
Class _L^J_,Q^ 
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Ube /iDobern 'Ccacbets' Scrtes 

Edixbd by WILLIAM C. BAGLET 



THE PROJECT METHOD 
OF TEACHING 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

NEW YORK • BOSTON ■ CHICAGO • DALLAS 
ATLANTA - SAN FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited 

LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 

TORONTO 



Ube /IDobetn Tleacbets* Series 

THE PROJECT METHOD 
OF TEACHING 



BY 

JOHN ALFORD STEVENSON, Ph.D. 

PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION, CARNEGIE INSTITUTE 
OF TECHNOLOGY, PITTSBURGH, PA. 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
1921 

All rights reserved 



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^"^ 

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'^-6 



COPTEIGHT, 1921, 

By the MAOMILLAN COMPANY. 



Set up and electrotyped. Published March, igai. 



J. S. Gushing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co. 
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



g)CI,A6ll378 



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THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED 
TO MY WIFE 

JOSEPHINE REESE STEVENSON 



PREFACE 

This book is devoted mainly to a critical discussion 
of the proj ect method of teaching. The term '^ proj ect " 
has only recently made its appearance in educational 
terminology, but the idea back of the project is not new. 
It is quite probable that skillful teachers have always 
used the essential features of the project method. 

A survey of modern teaching methods in engineering, 
law, medicine, agriculture, as well as in the prescribed 
subjects of the school curriculum, shows that much 
effort is being expended to bridge the chasm between 
school tasks and activities outside the school. In other 
words, the project idea, as defined by the author, is 
attempted to some extent in all these fields. 

The project idea aims to present problems in situa- 
tions not essentially different from those of life and to 
develop the technique of carrying the solution of these 
problems to completion. 

While the primary purpose of this study is to define 
the project and to discuss the project method from a 
critical point of view, it has seemed advisable, since 
method is so closely tied up with curriculum organiza- 
tion, to discuss the reorganization of the curriculum 
on the project basis. Also, the history of the project 
has been considered in some detail, since a knowledge 

vii 



VUl PREFACE 

of the historical background is essential to a proper 
understanding of the term. 

The first seven chapters deal with the theory of the 
project method. In chapter eight, projects which 
have been successfully worked out in elementary and 
high schools ar^^utlined in order to show the applica- 
tion of this method of teaching. No attempt has been 
made, however, to organize any one subject completely 
on the project basis. 

The author realizes the difficulty of organizing a 
course completely on the project basis. But, wherever 
it is possible to substitute units of work on the project 
basis for work on a subject basis, results will show the 
effectiveness of the project method. 

The author recognizes his very great indebtedness 
to his former teacher and colleague. Professor W. W. 
Charters, who was responsible for his interest in this 
subject. The idea of the "project," as defined in this 
study, was proposed by Professor Charters, and his 
suggestions have served as a guide in the working out 
of the "project method." 

J. A. S. 

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 
August, 1920 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER I. GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 
AND METHOD OF INVESTIGATION 

PAGE 

I. Inteoduction 1 

11. The Elements in the Problem 2 

III. Standards of Judgment 3 

(a) Memory of Information vs. Reasoning . . . 4 

(6) Conduct vs. Information for Its Own Sake . . 9 

(c) Natural Setting vs. Artificial Setting ... 14 

(d) The Priority of the Problem vs. the Priority of Principles 17 

IV. The Problem Restated 19 

CHAPTER 11. AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF 
TEACHING NOW IN COMMON USE 

I. The Types and the Method of Selection ... 22 

(a) Questions 23 

(1) Detailed and 1 ,, „ , , 

(2) Memory Questions P'"^'^'''!''^""' • • 25 

(3) Topical Questions 25 

(4) Thought Questions .27 

(6) The Topic . 28 

(c) The Problem, Example, Originals, and Exercises . 29 

(d) Drills, Tests, and Reviews 32 

(e) Applications, Illustrations, Demonstrations, and 

Practicums 33 

II. Summary 37 

ix 



X CONTENTS 

CHAPTER III. DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 

PAGE 

I. The Need for the Term ''Project" .... 40 

II. An Historical Statement of the Project ... 41 

III. The Justification and Definition of the Term 

"Project" 43 

IV. Criticism of Current Definitions 54 

(a) Dejfinitions Proposed by Teachers Interested in 

General Educational Theory .... 55 

(6) Definitions Proposed by Men Interested in Agricul- 
tural Education 69 

(c) Definitions Proposed by Teachers of Science . . 76 

(d) The Use of the Project in Industrial Education . . 81 

(e) Use of the Project in the Field of English Instruction 84 
(/) Use of the Project in Elementary School Instruction 86 

V. Summary ... 88 

CHAPTER IV. PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 

I. The Need for Making a Distinction between Project 

AND Problem 91 

II. Definitions of Problem and Project .... 94 

III. Types of Problems and Projects 97 

(a) The Manual Problem and the Manual Project . . 97 

(b) The Intellectual Problem and the Intellectual Project 98 

(c) Illustrations 99 

IV. Classification of Problems and Projects Based upon 

Degree of Complexity 102 

(a) Simple and Multi-problems 102 

(1) Simple Problems and Illustrations . . . 102 

(2) Multi-problems and Illustrations . . . 103 
(6) Simple and Complex Projects 107 

(1) Simple Projects and Illustrations . . . 108 

(2) Complex Projects and Illustrations . . . 109 
V. Summary 114 



CONTENTS XI 

CHAPTER V. IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT 
METHOD OF TEACHING 

PAGES 

I. The Project and Motivation 116 

II. The Project and Thinking 120 

III. The Project and Habit-formation .... 128 

IV. The Project and Action 131- 

V. Summary 135 

CHAPTER VI. THE PROJECT AND THE 
CURRICULUM 

I. The Need for Scientific Methods in Curriculum 

Organization 137 

II. Principles and Illustrations of Curriculum Making 138 

(a) A Curriculum in Woodworking Based on Projects 139 

(6) Illustrations of Curricula Based on Projects . . 142 
(c) Two Plans for the Organization of Subject Matter in 

the Curriculum 147 

III. Projects Need not Cut across Subjects of the Curric- 
ulum 152 

IV. Obsolete Material in School Curricula . . . 152 
V. The Project as the Basis for Curriculum Organization 153 

VI. Summary 156 

CHAPTER VII. APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT 
IDEA 

I. Engineering 158 

II. The Legal and Medical Clinics 168 

III. Journalism 181 

IV. Modern Language 183 

V. Insurance Salesmanship 186 

VI. Summary 191 



xii CONTENTS 

CHAPTER VIII. APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT 
METHOD TO SUBJECTS IN THE ELEMENTARY 
AND HIGH SCHOOLS 

PAGE 

Projects in English 197 

Projects in Civics . 205 

Projects in Hygiene 215 

Projects in Geography 227 

Projects in History . . 239 

Projects in Manual Training 243 

Projects in Mathematics , • • 252 

A Project in Biology . . 258 

Projects in Home Economics 261^ 

Projects in Physics 263 

Projects in Foreign Languages 267 

Projects Cutting across Several Fields of Subject Matter 268 

Summary • • • 277 

Bibliography 279 



EDITOR^S INTRODUCTION 

Teachees of educational theory are frequently- 
asked whether the ^^ project method '^ is something new 
or whether it is merely a new name for a type of teach- 
ing that has long been known and practiced. 

It may seem paradoxical to say that both these 
apparent alternatives are true. There is, I am confi- 
dent, something essentially new in the project method 
as it has been formulated by such men as Charters, 
'Stevenson, Snedden, and Kilpatrick. This new some- 
thing, however, is itself a product of an evolution, and 
it should go without saying that the method was 
practiced and even described long before it was chris- 
tened. To go no farther back than the second quarter 
of the nineteenth century, one may find in Thoreau's 
Walden si, criticism of traditional educational practices 
which expresses very clearly some of the ideals that the 
project method strives to realize : 

'^ . . , ' But,^ says one, ' you do not mean that the 
students should go to work with their hands instead 
of their heads ? ^ I do not mean that exactly. ... I 
mean that they should not play life, or study it merely, 
. . . but earnestly live it. . . . How could youths 
better learn to live than by at once trying the experi- 
ment of living ? ^ Methinks this WQuld exercise their 

xiii 



xiv EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 

minds as much as mathematics. If I wished a boy 
to know something about the arts and sciences, for 
instance, I would not pursue the common course, 
which is merely to send him into the neighborhood 
of some professor, where everything is professed and 
practiced but the art of life ; — to survey the world 
through a telescope or a microscope, and never with 
his natural eye; to study chemistry, and not learn 
how his bread is made, or mechanics, and not learn 
how it is earned ; to discover new satellites in Neptune, 
and not detect the motes in his eyes, or to what 
vagabond he is a satellite ; or to be devoured by the 
monsters all around him, while contemplating the 
monsters in a drop of vinegar. Which would have 
advanced the most at the end of the month, — the 
boy who had made his own jackknife from the ore 
which he had dug and smelted, reading as much as 
would be necessary for this, — or the boy who had 
attended the lectures on metallurgy at the Institute 
in the meanwhile, and had received a Rogers penknife 
from his father ? . . . To my astonishment I was in- 
formed on leaving college that I had studied naviga- 
tion ! — why, if I had taken one turn down the harbor 
I should have known more about it. . . .'^ ^ 

Certainly there is no problem more fundamental or 
more perplexing than that which is involved in the 
effort to link what we call knowledge with the larger 

^ This interesting commentary on teaching will be found in "Econ- 
omy," the first essay in Walden. 



EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION XV 

complex that we call life. To bring knowledge to the 
learner in the "natural setting" of a problem that the 
knowledge will help to solve ought to effect this end if 
any educational procedure can effect it. That the 
project method as thus conceived has its limitations 
is obvious enough. Even Thoreau might have found 
himself hard put to it to provide all the "natural 
settings" needed to impel the boy to make his own jack- 
knife "from the ore which he had dug and smelted, 
reading as much as would be necessary for this"; 
and it is tolerably clear, too, that Thoreau in his student 
days could have taken more than " one turn down the 
harbor" without learning even the little about naviga- 
tion that his college course in that subject taught him. 
The layman^s easy solutions for educational problems 
frequently involve a quite innocent disregard of practi- 
cal obstacles. If some of our educational problems 
were so easy to dispose of as they may seem to be on 
the surface, it is safe to assume that they would not 
have remained so long unsolved. 

Dr. Stevenson's treatment of the project method 
recognizes the difficulties which an effort to reorganize 
educational practice on the basis of "real problems" 
must meet and overcome. If it is true that the author 
has an abundant faith in the method, it is also true 
that he recognizes its limitations and its possible dan- 
gers. His attitude is that of the student who accepts 
a theory as inherently valid and then asks how the 
theory may be so applied that its virtues will be re- 



XVi EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 

fleeted in the practice. It avails us little to say of a 
proposal; " It is all right in theory, but it won't 
work/' If a proposal is theoretically right it will 
"work/' else the validity of the theory is question- 
able. The project method as defined by Dr. Steven- 
son represents a clear-cut theory of teaching. It 
merits careful study and a thoroughgoing test. Even 
if it does not prove to be a universal solvent for the 
great problem of bringing knowledge close to life, it 
is altogether probable that its formulation is a step 
forward — perhaps a longer and a more important 
step than has heretofore been taken in the development 
of educational method. 

William C. Bagley. 



THE PROJECT METHOD 
OF TEACHING 



THE PROJECT METHOD 
OF TEACHING 

CHAPTER I 

GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM AND METHOD 
OF INVESTIGATION 

I. Introduction 

A SURVEY of the literature dealing particularly with 
agricultural education, the teaching of home economics 
and of the trades and industries, and, more recently, 
with the administration of the Smith-Hughes Act, is 
sufficient to show that the term '^ project '^ has a wide 
use. Nor has the term been confined to the subjects 
cited, although it appears more frequently there than 
elsewhere. 

Coincident with its use in these fields has appeared a 
considerable and somewhat critical discussion of its 
meaning and implications, a discussion which has 
revealed a disconcerting variety of opinion. There 
are in existence approximately twenty definitions or 
descriptions of the project, discussed by fifteen writers. 
The results have indicated widespread interest, but 
have not suggested any striking agreement or uniform- 
ity of view. 

1 



2 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

This lack of uniformity, typical of project literature, 
has been commented upon by writers on the project 
method. Four years ago, H. P. Barrows, among 
others, pointed out the fact that "in many sections 
where teachers talk of projects there seems to be a lack 
of understanding of the plan and a lack of unity in the 
definition of the term. According to some teachers 
any effort toward giving their work a practical turn is 
termed a project. Others have used the word in lieu 
of ^practicum,' so that simple laboratory exercises 
are spoken of as projects.'^ ^ 

This vague use of the term, together with the diverse 
attempts to define or enumerate its essential char- 
acteristics, and the well-known tendency of educational 
writers to invent unnecessary terms, may properly 
give rise to the question as to whether the project 
really implies the introduction of a new concept. A 
critic objecting to the introduction of new terms might 
very pertinently ask whether the different meanings 
attached to the word might not be forms of other con- 
cepts now in use which would serve just as well as a 
new coinage. 

II. The Elements in the Problem 

A solution of the problem just stated will be 

attempted in this book. There are many incidental 

inquiries which will demand solution, but the present 

1 Barrows, H. P., "Home Projects in Secondary Courses in Agricul- 
ture," U. S. Department of Agriculture, States Relations Service Bulle- 
tin No. 346, p. 4, Feb, 21, 1916. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 3 

study will be devoted mainly to the investigation and 
solution of the following general divisions of the 
problem : 

A. The determination of certain elements that make 
a certain teaching situation a project. These will be 
treated as four pairs of contrasted aims in learning. 

B. An examination of concepts now in use and more 
or less closely related to the project for the purpose of 
estimating their availability for describing the teaching 
situation indicated in the first investigation. 

C. A statement and explanation of the term ^^ proj- 
ect." 

D. A critical examination 'of all extant definitions 
of the term. 

E. A consideration of the significance of the project 
in relation to problem, motive, reasoning, drill, and the 
curriculum. 

F. An examination of the ideas contained in the 
term, but under different names, in the teaching of 
law, medicine, engineering, journalism, and the foreign 
languages. 

III. Standards of Judgment 

The most lucid method of showing what is essential 
to the project as a method of teaching is found in an 
analysis of four characteristics that seem to be involved 
in the idea. As a device to aid in the analysis it has 
been found convenient to set forth four pairs of aims 
in teaching and to demonstrate, on the one hand, that 



4 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

the project includes one item from each of these pairs, 
and on the other, that no other concept in common 
use, such as problem, exercise, practicum, precisely 
covers this situation. These four pairs of aims are : 

(a) Reasoning vs. memory of information. 

(6) Conduct vs. information for its own sake. 

(c) Natural setting for learning vs. artificial setting 
for learning. 

{d) The priority of the problem vs. the priority of 
principles. 

It will be shown that the project, as herein defined, 
involves one item from each of these pairs, viz. : reason- 
ing, conduct, natural setting, and priority of the prob- 
lem. It will be further shown that all other terms 
in common use include less or more than these four 
items. 

(a) Memory of Information vs. Reasoning 

Two widely different methods of learning have been 
and are still used in educational practice. 

The first measures its worth by the learner's success 
in absorbing the material in the textbook so as to make 
a letter-perfect recitation when called upon by the 
teacher. This method may be termed the acquisition 
of information by memory. The material in the lessons 
consists in a great measure of dogmatic statements, and 
the mental activity demanded of the pupil is reduced 
largely to reproductive memory. The mental act 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 5 

demanded of pupils in such exercises does not constitute 
reasoning, but is little more than the assimilation of 
statements outlined and organized by the author. This 
fact is clearly shown by the survey of textbooks used 
by children in the grades and in the high school, from 
one of which the following illustration is taken : 

"Surface and Industry. Paraguay is a rich but un- 
developed country largely occupied by Indian negro 
races. The surface is made up of plains and low moun- 
tains covered by forests. The plains are chiefly devoted 
to grazing and the production of Paraguay tea, or 
mate. 

" Trade. Paraguay tea is cheaper than Asiatic tea 
and its use in South America is constantly increasing. 
Lumber is the principal forest product, and is sent to 
the Argentine Republic and Uruguay, both of which 
lack timber. These products, together with hides and 
tobacco, are the chief exports. The leading imports 
are textiles, provisions, hardware, and drugs. 

" Asuncion, the capital, from its position on the 
Paraguay River, is the most flourishing town and 
commercial port. 

Questions and Exercises 

" (l) What is the chief article of trade between 
Paraguay and the neighboring countries ? 

" (2) What does Paraguay import from the Argentine 
Republic? 

" (3) Give the chief advantages of the location of 
Asuncion." ^ 

1 Dodge, R. E., "Advanced Geography," pp. 210-21 L Rand, McNally 
and Company, Chicago, 1914. 



6 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The activity which the learner uses in answering 
these questions is largely confined to memory. The 
answers to questions (l) and (3) are found in the 
descriptive paragraph ; the answer to question (2) is 
found in the preceding paragraph describing the Argen- 
tine Republic and not quoted here. 

The recognition of the inadequacy of memorizing 
information is not recent. Seventy years ago, Horace 
Mann, in his annual report for 1845, pointed out what 
earlier writers had sensed, that verbal memory received 
too much attention : " The teacher may appear to do 
a vast deal more by stimulating the verbal memory of 
the child, and by giving him the show instead of the 
substance of knowledge, than if he could strive to 
reanimate the apparently dead powers of acquisition 
and of thought. Yet the latter should be done, at 
whatever seeming delay ; and the faithful teacher will 
do it irrespective of the consequences of it to his own 
reputation." ^ And again he asserts that " a habit, 
too, is . . . formed of reciting, without thinking. At 
length the most glib recitation becomes the best ; and 
the less the scholars are delayed by thought, the faster 
they can prate, as a mill clacks quicker when there is 
no grist in the hopper." ^ 

Another statement from Mann, quoted because of 



1 "Life and Works of Horace Mann," Vol. 4, p. 81, Reports and 
Addresses. Lee and Shepard, Publishers. 

2 Ibid., Vol. 2, p. 69, Lectures and Reports. Lee and Shepard, 
Publishers. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 7 

its humor, illustrates an extreme case of memoriter 
teaching : 

" It recently happened, in a school within my own 
knowledge, that a class of small scholars in geography, 
on being examined respecting the natural divisions of 
the earth, its continents, oceans, islands, gulfs, etc., 
answered all the questions with admirable precision 
and promptness. They were then asked, by a visitor, 
some general questions respecting their lesson, amongst 
others, whether they had ever seen the earth about 
which they had been reading ; and they unanimously 
declared in good faith that they never had.'' ^ 

As the quotations indicate, the defect of the memory 
exercises in developing reasoning was noted early, and 
out of the correctives, suggested by Mann and others, 
for developing the reasoning, have grown the concepts 
of the rational method, thought questions, and later 
the more elaborate form now known as the problem 
method. 

The problem method, as described by John Dewey 
and others, has found its psychological justification in 
the functional character of thinking. The origin of 
thinking, in Dewey's judgment, lies in a problem to 
be solved : 

" To say that thinking occurs with reference to 
situations which are still going on, and incomplete, is 
to say that thinking occurs when things are uncertain 

1 ''Life and Works of Horace Mann," Vol. 2, p. 68, Lectures and 
Reports. 



8 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

or doubtful or problematic. Only what is finished, 
completed, is wholly assured. Where there is reflection 
there is suspense. The object of thinking is to help 
reach a conclusion, to project a possible termination 
on the basis of what is already given. Certain other 
facts about thinking accompany this feature. Since 
the situation in which thinking occurs is a doubtful 
one, thinking is a process of inquiry, of looking into 
things, of investigating." ^ 

In other words, "It is the problematic situation in 
which thinking or reasoning has its rise." 

The importance of the problem in developing reason 
is also indicated by E. N. Henderson : 

" The use of the problem as the form of educating 
the reason has been especially characteristic of educa- 
tion in modern time. It may be said to be the largest 
outcome of educational reform in the direction of 
method, and its advent means the conscious endeavor 
to give the child not merely the fixed adjustments of 
recapitulatory education, but also the capacity to 
readjust that springs from reason and its culture. In 
general, the educational principle that has been put 
forward as representing the issue is that learning should 
stir up the self-activity of the child, that the child 
should learn from his own experience and efforts, not 
from those of the teacher; in other words, that the 
most effective teaching is self-teaching." ^ 

^ Dewey, John, "Democracy and Education," p. 173. The Mac- 
millan Company, 1916. 

2 Henderson, E. N., "The Principles of Education," p. 273. The 
Macmillan Company, 1910. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 9 

The most important advantages claimed for the 
problem method are that it gives a better hold on 
subject matter and develops a technique of reasoning. 

For our purposes, an analysis of concepts now in 
use which may be more or less related to the project, 
must be made in order to distinguish between these 
two educational tendencies, viz. : the mastery of 
information through mere memory and its acquisition 
through reasoning. The kind of teaching that in- 
cludes provisions and opportunities for reasoning, that 
makes use of the problem and lays particular emphasis 
on it, as against the kind of teaching that emphasizes 
merely memorized information, is worthy of considera- 
tion as a standard by which to evaluate commonly 
used concepts more or less related to the project. 

(b) Conduct vs. Information for Its Own Sake 

It is also necessary to distinguish between the com- 
pletion of an act (conduct) as contrasted with reading 
about and learning the plan of an act (information). 

Conduct as characterized by John Dewey is "a 
general term for the spirit and tenor of all the overt 
acts that constitute the behavior of an agent. As 
contrasted with the term ^behavior,' the word ^ con- 
duct ' is usually limited to acts that have an end 
consciously in view and that are preceded by more or 
less dehberation — in short, to such acts as have moral 
quality, actual or potential.'' ^ 

^ Dewey, John, " Conduct." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education. 



10 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The implied question which it is necessary to consider 
in the discussion of these two contrasted aims of learning 
is the character of the end of education. Is it the accu- 
mulation of information or the modification of conduct ? 

Educational writers agree that information for its 
own sake is not a satisfactory end of education. For 
example, F. M. McMurry says : 

" Much has been said in times past about art for 
art's sake, science for the sake of science, and knowledge 
for the sake of knowledge ; but these are vague expres- 
sions that will excite little interest so long as the worth 
of a man is determined by what comes out of him, by 
the service he renders, rather than by what enters in. 
Other branches of knowledge used for educative pur- 
poses, therefore, resemble the useful arts in the recogni- 
tion of their bearings on man, their actual use as the 
goal in their study." ^ 

Other educational writers agree that conduct is a 
worthy or satisfactory end of education. For instance, 
Dewey says : " It [education] is that reconstruction 
or reorganization of experience which adds to the 
meaning of experience, and which increases ability to 
direct the course of subsequent experience." And 
Bagley adds : " Education may be tentatively defined, 
then, as the process by means of which the individual 
acquires experiences that will function in rendering 
more efficient his future action." ^ 

1 McMurry, F. M., "How to Study," p. 198. Houghton Mifflin 
Company, 1909. 

2 Bagley, W. C, "The Educative Process, p. 22. The Macmillan 
Company, 1905. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 11 

The following quotation from E. C. Moore is also 
significant : 

" Learning to use one's own mind, however, in such 
ways that he will go on using it to advantage as long 
as he lives is the one, great, supreme object of educa- 
tion. Now that psychology has defined itself as the 
study of behavior, education must follow suit by con- 
ceiving its mission as that of training the student to 
profitable behavior, that is, to do the things that the 
situations which he will meet in life call for. Our 
contention is that these social doings are definite re- 
sponses to concrete situations, and that the learning 
which will fit us to make them must be the learning of 
definite doings, not that vague thing which is called 
general training." ^ 

Classroom teachers and textbook writers, when faced 
by the direct question as to the end of education, agree 
so unanimously with the statement that the end of 
education should be the modification of conduct, that 
no notice would need to be taken of any divergent 
view, were it not for the fact that actual classroom pro- 
cedure through questions, recitations, reviews, and 
examinations is frequently dominated by the other 
ideal, that the mastery of information, and not its 
applications to problems of conduct, is the important 
end of education. In fact, this conflict is so real that 
many of the commonly used concepts enumerated 
below ^ have been invented for the specific purpose 

1 Moore, E. C, "What is Education?" pp. 235-236. Ginn and 
Company, 1915. 2 gge p. 22. 



12 THE PROJECT METHOD OP TEACHING 

of insuring mastery of information rather than improve- 
ment of conduct. 

It must be recognized, of course, that information 
does tend to modify conduct. This modification, 
however, is not automatic ; it is to a very considerable 
degree both voluntary and conscious. It requires 
thought to apply information to conduct, and this 
apphcation has so subtle a technique that instruction 
in the applications of information is necessary, as is 
very clearly brought out by E. C. Moore in the follow- 
ing serio-comic paragraph : 

" Should verbal study be allowed to take the place 
of doing? Suppose the master workman in the shop, 
which is the world, should say to his apprentices : 
* It is true that you have come here to learn how to 
use the best of these tools in the working of iron, but 
that is a tedious and illiberal process. It will be more 
profitable to you if I should tell you some of the more 
important facts about them, and then we will spend 
the remainder of the time that you are to be here in 
analyzing the language which I shall have been com- 
pelled to employ in describing them to you. After 
all, language is the most important of human concerns. 
Some say it is a tool just like all these others here, but 
I think it is so much more than that that I am convinced 
that if you will only take the trouble, not indeed to 
learn to use it — for that is the least important thing 
about it — but to learn all the curious facts and distinc- 
tions that subtle minds have found out about it, and to 
recognize them when you meet instances of them, you 
will be better prepared to use both it and all these 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 13 

other tools than any amount of working with them 
under my direction could make you.' " ^ 

From the foregoing quotations it seems evident that 
the modification of conduct is a worthy end of educa- 
tion, at least, a more worthy end than that of informa- 
tion for its own sake. How, then, may provision be 
made for this essential element, the modification of 
conduct ? 

An act carried to completion guarantees that the 
solutions will be understood and will become the 
property of the individual who carries them out. In- 
formation will then be measured by the extent to which 
it can be made over into the experience of the individual 
using it to solve his problem. If the act is carried to 
completion a maximum modification of conduct will 
result. To the extent that the act remains incomplete, 
to that extent the individual has failed to exhaust the 
range of possible solutions and to remake more ex- 
perience ; and, by the same token, the less will conduct 
be affected. Conduct is modified by memoriter in- 
formation but within very narrow limits, for the range 
of possible applications is reduced. Conduct is modi- 
fied in proportion as the act is carried to completion. 

A concept which includes provisions and opportuni- 
ties for conduct, that is, for the carrying of acts to 
completion, and which lays particular emphasis on 
this feature, is worth consideration as a standard by 

1 Moore, E. C, "What is Education?" pp. 181-182. 



14 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

which to evaluate commonly used concepts related to 
the project. 

(c) Natural Setting vs. Artificial Setting 

An attempt to answer the question, Is the problem 
in its natural or artificial setting ? constitutes the basis 
for the discussion of the third pair of contrasted aims 
of teaching. Is the problem presented for solution by 
schoolroom practice essentially different from that 
found in Hfe outside the school? If the solution is 
carried on in essentially the same way in school as 
outside of school then the problem has a " natural 
setting." 

The boy in an agricultural school who determines to 
test his father's seed corn as a part of the assignment 
of the school work is carrying on the problem in a 
natural setting. The problems in mathematics that 
are solved in school with the same incentive and purpose 
that prompts their solution outside of school, are solved 
in their natural setting. The study of the gasoline 
engine in the physics class would be considered as a 
problem in its natural setting provided that the motives 
prompting the learning of the parts and the way to run 
the engine were not different from those that would 
dominate the same learning situation outside of the 
school. The reading of " Ivanhoe " in school would 
likewise be done in its natural setting if the motives 
prompting the reading were similar to those which 
would cause people outside the school to read the book. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 15 

In pursuing his work, the farmer makes plans to-day, 
purchases his seed and at the same time possibly gives 
attention to the buying of stock. Plans are made for 
sowing, harvesting, testing of the seed and the herd. 
Each day presents new problems which demand solu- 
tion. They arise because there is a need present. The 
carrying on of his activities brings him face to face with 
difficulties, with situations which demand solution. 
These problems which he faces from day to day repre- 
sent an ideal natural setting for the solution of 
difficulties. 

When, however, the subject matter for the school 
course in agriculture is arranged, it is frequently found 
almost impossible to teach the whale range of activi- 
ties that the farmer normally practices. Hence certain 
abstractions are made. Training may include courses 
in soil analysis, animal husbandry, and farm mechanics. 
Certain problems may be planned and carried out in 
each one of these subjects, but since some of the 
problems will not, or possibly may not, parallel any 
problem in practical life, it may be said that the setting 
of these problems is artificial. 

The artificiality of the setting of many school prob- 
lems is clearly characterized by John Dewey in the 
following statement : 

" There can be no doubt that a pecuHar artificiality 
attaches to much of what is learned in schools. It can 
hardly be said that many students consciously think 
of the subject matter as unreal ; but it assuredly does 



16 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

not possess for them the kind of reality which, the sub- 
ject matter of their vital experiences possesses. They 
learn not to expect that sort of reality of it ; they be- 
come habituated to treating it as having reality for 
the purposes of recitations, lessons, and examinations. 
That it should remain inert for the experiences of daily 
life is more or less a matter of course. The bad effects 
are twofold. Ordinary experience does not receive the 
enrichment which it should ; it is not fertilized by 
school learning. And the attitudes which spring from 
getting used to and accepting half-understood and 
ill-digested material weaken vigor and efficiency of 
thought. . . . Where schools are equipped with 
laboratories, shops, and gardens, where dramatiza- 
tions, plays, and games are freely used, opportunities 
exist for reproducing situations of life, and for acquiring 
and applying information and ideas in the carrying 
forward of progressive experiences." ^ 

Criticism that the subject matter of the school is 
still largely isolated from the experiences outside of 
the school is due largely to the fact that few^provisions 
are made for carrying forward problems in the school 
in their natural setting. 

The idea must be borne in mind as the discussion of 
natural and artificial setting proceeds that the elemen- 
tary and high schools are not training scientists, writers 
of fiction, or philosophers, but people who constitute 
average folk. But if the pupils decide to become highly 
specialized experts, it may be that the problems which 
they then face will assume what in this discussion would 
1 Dewey, John, " Democracy and Education," p. 190. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 17 

seem to be an abstract and artificial setting. This 
seemingly abstract and artificial setting may be the 
natural setting for such problems. 

Methods of teaching which lay stress, on the one 
hand, upon abstracted subject matter, and, on the 
other, upon the provision for, and the acceptance of, 
the natural setting of problems in the school, may 
rightfully be taken into consideration in the evalua- 
tion of commonly used concepts related to the project. 

(d) -The Priority of the Problem vs. the Priority 
of Principles 

This statement indicates the differences in the order 
in which principles and problems are presented. In 
the first instance, the study of principles precedes 
their application to a problem ; in the second case, the 
problem is staged for the learner and the principles 
are introduced as needed in the solution of the problem. 

The differences between these two types of learning 
are commented upon by G. R. Twiss : 

" As finding the place of a new fact or phenomenon 
in the general system is always the final step for the 
scientist in the treatment of a problem, so it should be 
for the student in the science class. Accordingly the 
logical position of a new fact should not be given by 
the teacher at the start, as so often it is, but should 
be found by the class after they have studied it." ^ 

1 Twiss, G. R., "Science Teaching," pp. 77-78. The Macmillan 
Company, 1917. 



18 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

And again : 

^- This fundamental principle of science teaching, 
which withholds theories until they are needed to 
explain the facts, and allows them to be used only as 
working hypotheses until the accumulated evidence 
forces conviction, is flagrantly violated in some of the 
most widely used texts in both physics and chemistry. 
In one physics text the wave theory of light comes 
almost at the beginning of the subject, and the molecu- 
lar theory is introduced before the phenomena of heat 
are taken up. In several of the chemistries the authors 
take the shortest possible cut to the atomic theory. 
The result is muddy and vague talk by the pupils 
about what molecules and ether do, when plain state- 
ments of fact are required. It leads them inevitably 
toward a dogmatic, deductive attitude ; and it fails to 
train them in distinguishing between fact and infer- 
ence — an ability that is absolutely essential to any 
clear and scientific thinking." ^ 

The principles that are developed by the learner in 
situations in which he has had need for them will 
function in the real situations outside the classroom. 
If the definitions are given first and then illustrated 
there is still left a doubt in the pupil's mind as to 
whether or not the principles can be used by him in the 
solution of his problem. As Twiss says, " Real knowl- 
edge of a law or principle — that is, facility or skill in 
using it — can be gained only by practice in dealing 
with problematic situations in which it is involved.'' ^ 

1 Twiss, G. R., "Science Teaching," p. 309. ^ 75^,^ p, 291. 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 19 

The advantages claimed for the priority of the prob- 
lem as against the priority of principles may be 
summarized as follows : 

(1) The principles will be better understood when 
they are developed as the learner has need for them. 

(2) The principles learned in this way are acquired 
by the individual in the order in which they were 
acquired by the race. The formulation of the principles 
is the final process following observation and applica- 
tion. It does not come first. 

(3) More interest attaches to the formulation of 
the principles when the use of the principle is known 
and appreciated. 

The disadvantages of the procedure are that fewer 
principles may be given and that a systematic outlook 
may be more difficult to obtain. These objections 
will be considered later when the imphcations of the 
project method are under discussion. 

A method of teaching which makes adequate pro- 
vision for raising, first of all, problems in the mind of 
the learner, developing principles as needed in the 
solution of the problems, should be given considera- 
tion as a standard by which to evaluate concepts 
related to the project. 

IV. The Problem Restated 

Four pairs of standards have been mentioned : in- 
formation acquired by reasoning vs. information ac- 
quired by memory, information for its use in modifying 



20 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

conduct vs, information for its own sake, learning in a 
natural setting vs. learning in an artificial setting, and 
the setting of problems with the introduction of prin- 
ciples as needed in their solution vs. the study of 
principles before acquaintance with the problems in 
which they are useful. 

It is evident that there may be an important type of 
teaching situation which would involve one of each of 
the four pairs. For instance, the student might have 
a situation in which he would attack a problem in its 
natural setting, obtain information by reasoning out 
his solution, use this information in actually modifying 
his conduct, and learn his facts and principles as the 
solution of his problem demanded. If so, there is a 
demand for a name for such a teaching situation, pro- 
vided that no term now in use denotes these elements 
and provided that the situation is of sufficient educa- 
tional importance to warrant the invention of a new 
term. 

That such teaching situations are numerous is 
clearly shown by their constant recurrence in several 
fields of instruction. 

Two situations will be mentioned here from different 
fields and other examples will be multiplied throughout 
the later discussions. The situation in agriculture is 
stated by R. W. Stimson. 

" In the ordinary routine of the farm it may be that 
the boy is required to tend the poultry. During at 
least one year he should be given control of at least 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF PROBLEM 21 

one pen of poultry, and facilities for feeding a balanced 
ration and trap nesting individual birds for comparison 
of the productivity in laying." ^ 

Another example is cited from household science. A 
student is required to assume responsibility for the 
purchase and preparation of the meals at home for a 
longer or shorter period with the understanding that 
they be well balanced. 

The foregoing problems are types of situations not 
at all uncommon in many subjects, including the 
agricultural and household science courses, which 
involve (1) the standards of reasoning, (2) informa- 
tion acquired, as it is needed, for use in (3) carrying on 
a practical line of action in (4) its natural setting. 

The next chapter will consider the recognized types 
of teaching to see if any, without modification, can 
take care of teaching situations that are similar to 
those just cited from the fields of agriculture and 
household science. 

1 Stimson, R. W., "The Massachusetts Home-Project Plan of Vo- 
cational Agricultural Education." U. S. Bureau of Education, Whole 
No. 579, p. 15, 1914. 



CHAPTER II 

AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING NOW 
IN COMMON USE 

I. The Types and the Method of Selection 

Can the school activities included within the term 
^'project '^ be taken care of by other concepts now in use? 
To answer this question it is necessary that the types 
of teaching which collectively include some of the most 
important phases of the project, be analyzed into their 
elements and their functions determined so as to com- 
pare them with the elements and functions for which 
the word "project '^ may be made to stand. 

The most reliable source in which to find the concepts 
in common and accepted use is in contemporary ele- 
mentary and high school textbooks. A careful exami- 
nation of forty-two books, including texts in geography, 
language, science, reading, algebra, geometry, and 
Latin, disclosed fourteen methods of teaching found 
with sufficient frequency to warrant the statement 
that they comprise those now in most common use. 
The methods noted are : questions, topics, problems, 
examples, originals, exercises, drills, tests, reviews, 
applications, illustrations, demonstrations, experiments, 
and practicums. 

22 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 23 

These methods should be examined critically to see 
if any one is sufficiently inclusive and exclusive in its 
scope to provide for the situations cited above and 
illustrated by household science and agriculture. If 
all of the four desirable standards are not included or 
if other than the four standards are included, it will 
then be desirable to propose a new concept. 

(a) Questions 

Since the topical method of organization centers 
largely in questions, an illustration of the topic and the 
uses made of the four types of questions, the detailed, 
topical, memory, and thought questions, will be dis- 
cussed. The topical treatment is taken from Red way 
and Hinman's Natural School Geography. 

" The Northeastern Section 

" The six states in the extreme northeastern part 
of our country are often called New England. The 
surface in general is hilly, while the northwestern part 
of the section is traversed by the northern ranges of 
the Appalachians. Of these the Green Mountains are 
the most continuous, and the White Mountains, east 
of Connecticut River, are the highest. 

" The section is less suited to agriculture than any 
other part of the eastern lowlands. The valleys of 
the larger rivers are fertile, but over much of the 
uplands the soil is thin, unproductive, and covered 
with glacial bowlders. In the northern part are exten- 
sive forests. Such crops as hay, apples, potatoes, and 
tobacco are raised in the valleys. Market gardening 



24 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

and dairying are carried on. The greater part of the 
food used by the people, however, comes from the west. 

" The numerous waterfalls of this section afford 
excellent water power, and manufacturing has become 
the chief occupation. Steam power is now largely 
used, however, coal for fuel being brought chiefly by 
sea from the ports of Chesapeake and Delaware bays. 

^^ The section produces practically no coal or raw 
materials other than stone and wood ; hence the articles 
manufactured are those which have a high value in 
comparison with that of the fuel and material used. 

" The chief manufactures are cotton and woolen 
cloth and boots and shoes, of which this section pro- 
duces more than all the rest of the country. Other 
characteristic manufactures are brass goods, paper, 
wood pulp, light hardware, fine machinery, firearms, 
clothing, silk, jewelry, and rubber goods. 

" Southern New England is the most densely peopled 
part of the United States. More than half the people 
there live in cities. 

" To supply the needs of the dense manufacturing 
population, the southern half of the section is covered 
with a network of railways, which connects it with the 
south and west, and also with the railway systems of 
Canada. The glacier-carved fiords and bays of the 
New England coast contain many fine harbors, from 
which vessels carry on an active coasting or fishing 
trade ; and Boston maintains a large foreign com- 
merce." ^ 

To illustrate the detailed memory and topical ques- 
tions, and to show how closely they follow the text 

1 Redway and Hinman, "Natural School Geography," pp. 56, 57. 
American Book Company, New York 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 25 

materials, a list is presented. These questions are 
typical of the questions which accompany the topical 
organization of the subject matter. 

(1) Detailed and 1 c, n -n i_i 

; : , ^ ^ . } Small Problems 

(2) Memory Questions J 

(1) How many states are included in the North- 
eastern section ? 

(2) What is the character of the surface ? Why ? 

(3) What mountain ranges traverse the North- 
western part of the section ? 

(4) What section is suited to agriculture? Why? 
What section is not ? Why ? 

(5) What are the chief agricultural products ? 

(6) What is the chief occupation of the people of this 
section? Why? 

(7) Why are the manufactured articles those which 
have a high value in comparison with the fuel and 
material used ? 

(8) Name the chief manufactured products. 

(9) Why does this section have such a network of 
railroads ? 

(3) Topical Questions 

(1) What are the surface characteristics of the 
Northeastern group of states ? Why ? 

(2) What are the chief occupations of this section? 
Why? 

In the topic taken from the geography there are 



26 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

gathered certain facts which are presumably worth 
learning and which are presented in logical order. 
These facts are taught one by one and not in response 
to the needs of the learner. 

The mental effort of the learner will probably be 
greater if the topical questions are used instead of the 
detailed questions. In either case the questions may be 
answered if the material in the paragraph is remembered. 

As previously stated, the memory question is closely 
connected with the topical arrangement, which ac- 
counts for the topical arrangement just quoted and 
discussed later in the treatment of the topical method, 
and was brought into use first to insure the mastery of 
the subject matter as presented. This mastery de- 
pends upon the ability of the pupils to memorize and 
to give back the facts. 

The question is one of the oldest devices used to 
develop some degree of reasoning on the part of the 
pupils. The lessons are assigned and the question is 
used not only to determine what the pupil knows and 
how much of previous lessons he has understood, but 
also to give the teacher a cue as to the next step in the 
lesson to be undertaken. They may stimulate the 
pupils to face new issues and to solve problems, or 
they may degenerate into a very formal exercise in 
which the teacher asks questions that can be answered 
by memorizing the ready-made solution of the text. 
At least the teacher when directing a series of ques- 
tions dominates the recitation, with the constant dan- 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 27 

ger that the outHne of the unit of subject matter is 
not being followed by the pupils. This means that the 
pupils are content to answer questions occasionally 
and at the end of the hour find that they have given 
many ready-made solutions, possibly not thoroughly 
understood and probably with little appreciation of 
the coherence or the main objectives of the lesson. 
The question may be a valuable device to stimulate 
reasoning, but unless used by very skillful teachers, it 
is likely to cause the recitation to degenerate into a 
memoriter exercise. 

The questions enumerated on page 25 illustrate the 
memory questions. The facts which are necessary to 
answer the questions are given in the descriptive para- 
graph. The activity which is demanded is memory 
of facts. 

(4) Thought Questions 

Suppose this question were proposed as a substitute 
for all the questions given : "To what extent can the 
industries, occupations, and locations of cities in New 
England be accounted for by its surface conditions? '^ 
This could be classed as a thought question and the 
answer to this question would demand a reconstruction 
of the pupiPs knowledge of the surface conditions in 
New England, The memory of facts would not be 
sufficient to answer it. 

The use of memory questions, detailed questions, or 
topical questions would not be sufficient to take care 



28 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

of the four standards ; they lay stress on memory of 
information rather than on reasoning, on information 
rather than conduct, and on an artificial setting. The 
thought question has one advantage over the questions 
cited above, in that it lays stress on reasoning, but in 
other respects, like the foregoing types, it is inadequate 
to meet the teaching situation demanded above. 

(b) The Topic 

The topical method of organization illustrated on 
pages 25, 26, and 27 may emphasize both the memory 
of information as such and reasoning. It may empha- 
size both information as an end in itself and informa- 
tion which modifies conduct. The artificial setting is 
stressed more than the natural setting. The topics 
are often selected dogmatically without particular 
reference as to whether they fit into the le*arner^s 
problems. Since the principles are often stated in 
the topic before the need for principles arises, it is safe 
to assume that priority of principles is emphasized 
rather than the priority of problem. The topical 
method of teaching (the topical arrangement of subject 
matter) , on the one hand, includes more than the method 
which we propose and, on the other, does not include 
priority of problem and the natural setting for problems. 
Hence the topic as used and understood in practice will 
not take care of the four elements which have been 
proposed and which are necessary to cover the type of 
teaching cited from agriculture and household science. 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 29 

To make the topic do this, it would be necessary to 
enlarge the term and redefine it. 

(c) Problems, Examples, Originals, and Exercises 

The term ^' problem " is used very loosely in current 
practice. " Problem/' ^' example/' " original/' and 
" exercise " are often used interchangeably in mathe- 
matics with little attention to exact distinctions. In 
geometry, according to D. E. Smith : 

" The problem is distinguished from the theorem as 
being a proposition requiring some construction to be 
effected, while the theorem requires some assertion to 
be proved. In algebra and arithmetic certain writers 
have used the word ^ example ' to cover all problems 
to be solved, and some have used ' problem ' to refer 
only to concrete exercises." ^ 

The term " example " is often used in mathematics 
for a sample problem or solution to illustrate a certain 
mathematical process. In general, however, the ex- 
ample is an exercise which is set forth for the pupil to 
drill upon and to test his mathematical skill. The 
usual distinction between it and the problem is that 
the former is a symbolic or abstract statement of the 
facts while the latter is concrete. The distinction made 
by Henry Suzzallo may be cited : 

" The ' example ' is usually completely expressed 
in mathematical symbols, and the ^ problem ' is com- 

^ Smith, D. E., " Problem in Mathematics." Monroe's Cyclopedia of 
Education. 



30 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

monly stated in words. . . . In the case of the example, 
the mathematical sign tells the child what to do, 
whether to add, subtract, multiply, or divide ; the 
^ example ' being a kind of pre-reasoned problem, the 
pupil has only to manipulate according to the sign, his 
whole attention throughout being focused on the 
formal calculation. In the second case, the child has 
two distinct functions : he must, from the description 
of the situation presented, decide through the process 
of reasoning what he is to do (add, subtract, divide, 
or multiply), and having rendered his judgment, he 
must proceed through the formal calculation." ^ 

The term " original " is frequently used in geometry. 
It is similar to a new theorem ; the only difference is 
that in the general usage, the theorem has the con- 
struction made and the proof partially or completely 
stated, while the original leaves the proof to the learner. 
In this sense it is no different from the problem as 
defined by D. E. Smith, on page 29. 

The term " exercise " is used in a very broad and 
indefinite sense. A consideration of its use in the 
textbooks reveals the fact that it frequently covers 
what has been defined by problems, theorems, ex- 
amples, and originals. 

Before giving further consideration to the analysis 
of these terms, the definition of the term ^' problem " 
in its general use is given as stated by John Dewey : 

" Every conscious situation involving reflection pre- 
sents a distinction between certain given conditions 
1 Suzzallo, Henry, "Example." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education. 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 31 

and something to be done with them ; the possibihty of 
a change. This contrast and connection of the given 
and the possible confers a certain problematic, uncer- 
tain aspect upon those situations that evoke thought. 
There is an element, which may be slight or which may 
be intense, of perplexity, difficulty, or confusion. 
The need of clearing up confusion, of straightening out 
an ambiguity, of overcoming an obstacle, of covering 
the gap between things as they are and as they may 
be when transformed, is, in germ, a problem." ^ 

In relation to the eight standards, while the problem 
may lay stress on either the memory of information or 
reasoning, it usually emphasizes the intellectual phase 
of the solution rather than its modification of conduct. 
It takes into account the natural setting but may and 
often does accept an artificial setting, and as inter- 
preted by the leading advocates of the problem method 
it favors the priority of problem over the statement of 
principles. It does not, therefore, exclusively include 
all the standards which are necessary to take care of 
the type of situations as illustrated from agriculture 
and household science although it approximates this 
more closely than do the terms hitherto considered. 
The shortcoming of the problem is that the solution 
is not necessarily carried into action, but rather empha- 
sizes intellectual activity. Unless the meaning of 
problem as the term is ordinarily used is modified, it 
will not take care of the items which our proposed 
concept embraces. 

1 Dewey, John, "Problem." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education. 



32 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The original and example have the shortcomings of 
the problem and in addition they lay emphasis on the 
priority of principles. The exercise, an inclusive term 
for the three concepts, therefore, does not include the 
necessary standards. 

(d) Drills, Tests, and Reviews 

The types of teaching known as drills, tests, and 
reviews will be considered next. Drill is defined by 
Henderson as " the systematic endeavor to fix firmly 
habits or associations between stimuli and responses. 
These associations may connect sense stimuli with 
ideas or with movements, or ideas with other ideas 
or with movements." ^ Drills may mean the fixing of 
a physical or a mental habit ; for example, to pass in 
the school line properly is a physical habit, to be able 
to give the product of 8X8 quickly is a mental habit. 
Drill is important, since much of the work, especially 
in the elementary school, involves the formation of 
automatic responses. One writer states that three 
fifths of the time in the elementary school is absorbed 
in drill. 

Tests are used to measure the efficiency of the work 
done in schools. E. E. White wrote that " the test 
has for its end the disclosing of the results of instruc- 
tion, drill, and study, the disclosing of the pupiFs 
attainments." ^ 

1 Henderson, E. N., "Drill." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education. 

2 White, E. E., " Art of Teaching," p. 53. American Book Co., 1901. 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 33 

A definite statement of the meaning of a ^' review " 
is quoted from Suzzallo : 

"A classroom exercise devised to survey the facts 
and principles previously learned by observation, dis- 
cussion, reading, etc., is a review. It is literally a 
reviewing of already acquired knowledge in a detailed 
and completely connected way, so as to relate the 
items and emphasize the more important of them." ^ 

These types of teaching involve memory of informa- 
tion ; the test and, in some measure, the review, may 
involve reasoning. They may also modify conduct 
but in a limited way, because the act is not carried to 
completion. But these concepts will not lay emphasis 
on natural setting for solution or on priority of problem 
over the statement of principles. Since none of the 
terms includes the necessary elements for the situations 
previously stated, without changing the meaning of 
these terms as now understood, it will be seen that they 
cannot be used for the proposed concept. 

(e) Applications, Illustrations, Demonstrations y 
Experiments, and Practicums 

There is another group of methods which may be 
properly discussed together, for the variation in their 
meanings is not very great, — applications, illustrations, 
demonstrations, experiments, and practicums. 

Application is the fifth step of the Herbartian lesson 

^ Suzzallo, Henry, " Review." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education, 



34 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

plan. In the acquisition of knowledge from the printed 
page the question of a complete mastery may be raised. 
The application of this knowledge to actual situations 
will guarantee a more complete mastery. In general, 
application has been considered as the step which 
applies principles previously learned. Suzzallo gives 
a good description of the term " application " : 

" In modern pedagogical practice, the principle has 
two modes of expressing itself : (l) In requiring that 
the original acquisition of knowledge and values be the 
product of action, as in any process of ^ learning by 
doing.' This is the characteristic mode that the prin- 
ciple takes in the ^ active learning ' of the kindergarten 
and the more modern type of primary school. It is 
also noted especially in the teaching of manual training, 
laboratory science, drawing, singing, and similar sub- 
jects affording a large opportunity for action. (2) In 
requiring that knowledge largely communicated through 
conversation or the printed page be given actual ap- 
plication as a final safeguard against defective mastery. 
The principle takes this second characteristic mode in 
the teaching of the more abstract subjects (physics, 
ethics, etc.) to mature students. In this way general 
laws, truths, and precepts are brought into effect, 
tested, and, if necessary, reconstructed.'' ^ 

The term " illustration " means an example or com- 
parison by which a subject, a statement, or a principle 
is elucidated or explained. 

1 Suzzallo, Henry, "Application." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Educa- 
tion. 



AN EXAMINATION OP TYPES OF TEACHING 35 

Demonstration " in its literal and etymological sense 
means showing something to be thus and so, pointing 
to an object that exists or an event that occurs so as 
to induce perception of it. ... In its stricter sense, 
demonstration means conclusions that follow with 
rigid necessity from premises which are themselves 
regarded as necessary truths, or which are derived from 
such self-evident truths. '' ^ Demonstration is a method 
by which the teacher or instructor conducts the experi- 
ment before the class. It is used to teach a lesson 
which, for any reason, it is not practicable to carry out 
as a class exercise. The teaching in the natural sciences 
is, sometimes done by demonstration, but more often 
the teaching is carried on by having the students 
conduct individual experiments. 

Teaching by experiments is " part of the general 
movement for learning through direct observation." 
The instruction by experiment is sometimes called the 
method of " rediscovery." Suzzallo considers such a 
use of the term loose, " inasmuch as there is little or 
no inventiveness on the part of the student in the 
devising of apparatus or the arranging of conditions. 
These are all prearranged by the instructor so as to 
make a conclusion fairly obvious. Teaching through 
experimentation is a highly rational representation of 
scientific facts rather than a rediscovery." ^ 

1 Dewey, John, "Demonstration." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Educa- 
tion. 

2 Suzzallo, Henry, "Experiment, Teaching by." Monroe's Cyclo- 
pedia of Education. 



36 THE PROJECT METHOD OP TEACHING 

The experiment gives opportunity for action, for 
providing the pupil with concrete experiences as well as 
verbal information. As a concept to take care of 
situations such as we have proposed, it fails in propor- 
tion as the principles are first stated dogmatically, 
with experiments used to explain or illustrate prin- 
ciples. This is too often understood to be the meaning 
of experiments in teaching. 

The term " practicum " represents one of the latest 
concepts in methods of teaching. The term is used 
particularly in agricultural education. After a very 
, careful search the writer has been unable to find a 
formal definition of the term which includes the ideas 
usually set forth in the descriptions given of practi- 
cums. It usually means the apphcation of principles 
already learned to the carrying out of an exercise which 
has economic value and which is of interest to the 
pupil. A characterization of the term " practicum " 
by Heald is cited : 

" The word ^ practicum ' is a rather broad term, 
covering the briefer exercises, demonstrations, verifi- 
cations, and problems, many of which were formerly 
called experiments. The practicum in agriculture may 
be for the purpose of verification or, more frequently, 
to acquire skill in a process which may be needed in 
the project work." ^ 

1 Heald, F. E., "The Home Project as a Phase of Vocational Agri- 
cultural Education." Bulletin No. 21, Agricultural Series 3, Federal 
Board for Vocational Education, p. 8, 1918. 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 37 

The definition given in the ^' Standard Dictionary '^ 
is : ^^ In some colleges and universities an academic 
exercise consisting of practical work, as in the labora- 
tory." This definition, however, makes no mention 
of the economic aspect of the work, which seems to be 
a factor emphasized quite generally. 

The terms " application," '^ demonstration," " ex- 
periment," and " practicum," then, do not make pro- 
vision for the four elements which our proposed concept 
includes and which seem worth while to include. In 
each of the methods, principles are given priority over 
problems. In application the principles are -applied ; 
in illustration the principles are illustrated ; in demon- 
stration the principles are shown to be true or false ; 
in experiment the principles are illustrated ; in the 
practicum principles are applied in developing some- 
thing economically valuable. In no case is the interest 
of the pupil aroused by being placed in a situation where 
principles must be developed as needed. This, after 
all, seems to be an exercise sufl&ciently worth while 
educationally to be embodied in a new term. 

II. Summary 

For the sake of clearness a summarizing statement 
of the shortcomings of the commonly-used terms is 
herewith offered. 

The types of teaching involved in the use of memory 
questions, thought questions, detailed and topical ques- 
tions do not include the four standards set up in the 



38 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

proposed concept, for they lay stress on memory of 
information rather than reasoning, on information 
rather than conduct, and on an artificial setting rather 
than the natural setting for the problem. The thought 
question does lay stress on reasoning but in other 
respects it has for the purpose of describing the project 
the shortcomings of the other questions. 

The topic is inadequate because it may emphasize 
both the memory of information as such and reasoning ; 
it emphasizes information as an end in itself more 
than information which modifies conduct ; it stresses 
the artificial setting and the priority of principles over 
problems. 

The problem lacks in the emphasis it places on the in- 
tellectual aspect of the solution rather than the modifica- 
tion of conduct . The terms ^ ^ original ' ' and ^ ^ example ' ' 
have the shortcomings of the problem and in addition 
lay emphasis on the priority of principles. The exer- 
cise, an inclusive term for problem, original, and ex- 
ample, does not include the necessary standards. 

Drills, tests, and reviews involve memory of informa- 
tion, although tests and reviews may involve reasoning. 
These terms are lacking in that they do not lay emphasis 
on natural setting for solutions or on priority of problem 
over the statement of principles. 

The terms ^' application," ^^demonstration," "illus- 
tration,'^ "experiment," and "practicum," do not make 
provision for the four elements which our proposed con- 
cept includes. In this group of concepts principles are 



AN EXAMINATION OF TYPES OF TEACHING 39 

given priority over problems. In application the prin- 
ciples are applied ; in the demonstration the principles 
are shown to be true or false ; in experiment and illus- 
tration the principles are illustrated ; and in the practi- 
cum principles are applied in developing something of 
commercial value. 

It is evident that the foregoing commonly-used 
terms do not, in their ordinary meaning, denote ex- 
clusively a method of teaching, involving reasoning, 
primarily for the sake of modifying conduct in its 
natural setting, and the introduction of principles as 
they are needed. If any of the foregoing concepts or 
terms are used, some qualifying adjective would have 
to be added to it with attendant complication arising 
from confusion of meaning. 

In the next chapter, the term ^'project," with defini- 
tion and discussion, will be proposed to include these 
elements. 



CHAPTER III 

DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 

I. The Need for the Term "Project" 

The discussion and analysis of the types of teaching 
considered in Chapters I and II show that terms now 
in use are, without modification of meaning, inade- 
quate to take care of teaching situations similar to 
those illustrated in current approved methods of 
teaching agriculture and household science ; and since 
the terms, as a rule, already have implications that are 
well described and understood in common practice it 
is preferable to adopt a new term to describe the teach- 
ing situation characterized by the four standards. This 
term which we propose to accept and define is the 
" project." 

Historically the word " project " has been used for 
many years in business and in some specialized forms 
of education ^ with a rather vague meaning. Recently 
it has been accepted by the United States Department 
of Agriculture as an outlined plan for carrying on a 
piece of cooperative work. It was first employed in 
agricultural education by R. W. Stimson, who used 
the expression "home project" in the agricultural 

1 Particularly in the training of architects. 
40 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 41 

courses of the Massachusetts vocational schools. In 
1908-1910 the unmodified word " project " was used 
by Stimson^ Snedden, Prosser, and Allen in their report 
to the Massachusetts Legislature. Since its use in 
Massachusetts, the term with many variations in mean- 
ing has been applied to many of the subjects of the 
course of study. 

II. A Historical Statement of the Project 

A brief historical sketch by Heald of the term 
'^ project ^^ in agriculture may be accepted as authori- 
tative. 

" For many years the term ^ project ' has been used 
to designate carefully planned investigations in agri- 
cultural science covering a considerable period of time, 
frequently demanding several years for their comple- 
tion. Such plans, including aims and methods, have 
been submitted by the agricultural experiment stations 
of the several states and approved by the Ofl&ce of 
Experiment Stations in the States Relations Service 
of the United States Department of Agriculture. 

" More recently the same term ^ project ' under 
practically the same conditions has been applied to the 
projects in demonstration work and extension teaching 
carried out under the Smith-Lever Act. The term 
carries with it the idea of a program of importance, of 
some duration, and an expectation of certain tangible 
and valuable results. 

" This term ^ project ' was borrowed first by second- 
ary school teachers of science and manual arts because 
its use by experiment stations suggested an idea of 



42 THE PROJECT METHOD OP TEACHING 

value in connection with the practical phases of teach- 
ing these subjects. 

" In connection with the teaching of agriculture in 
secondary schools the idea of projects at home crystal- 
lized and took on the name of ^ home project ' about 
1908 in Massachusetts, receiving the sanction of the 
State Board of Education under suitable legislation in 
1911. This plan, with modifications which do not 
change the principal points of the definition, had been 
adopted in most of the states which had constructive 
legislation on agriculture in the secondary schools 
previous to the enactment of the Smith-Hughes Act. 
In its work on secondary and elementary school agri- 
culture, the United States Department of Agriculture 
had previously accepted the prevailing conception of 
the home project, issuing several publications on this 
basis." 1 

But while the term has been of such recent origin 
as a school concept, the idea behind the term has been 
used with some modification of one sort or another by 
law, medicine, engineering, journalism, and the foreign 
languages for some time ; and in various informal ways 
has been slowly developing in many of the subjects of 
the curriculum of the elementary school, the high 
school, the normal school, and the college. 

1 Heald, F. E., "The Home Project as a Phase of Vocational Agri- 
cultural Education." Bulletin No. 21, Agricultural Series 3, p. 7, 
Federal Board for Vocational Education. Washington, September, 
1918. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 43 

III. The Justification and Definition of the 
Term "Project" 

The justification for taking a term that has been in 
use for some time is that in general the aim of those 
who use it has been to take care of situations such 
as we have cited from agriculture and household 
science. The frequent use of the term seems to 
point to the movement seeking for a word that will 
cover the above-mentioned situations. Again, since 
few formal definitions have been proposed and since 
the limits of the project, as gathered from the litera- 
ture, have not been clearly drawn, it will be advan- 
tageous to use it to describe such types of teaching 
and thus avoid the necessity of proposing another 
one. 

The definition of the project which is proposed for 
substantiation is the following : 

A project is a problematic act carried to completion in 
its natural setting. 

In this definition it is to be noted that : (a) there is 
implied an act carried to completion as over against 
the passive absorption of information; (h) there is 
insistence upon the problematic situation demanding 
reasoning rather than merely the memorizing of in- 
formation ; (c) by emphasizing the problematic aspect 
the priority of the problem over the statement of prin- 
ciples is clearly imphed ; and (d) the natural setting 
of problems as contrasted with an artificial setting is 



44 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

explicitly stated. A brief discussion of these particular 
phases of the definition will be given. 

(a) The presentation of subject matter or the staging 
of a situation which results in activity, in carrying out 
the act to completion as over against the passive 
acceptance of information^ is one of the most signifi- 
cant contributions of the project. For the term 
" act," or " action," the definition of E. B. Titchener 
may be accepted : 

" In its most general meaning, an action is an 
organized movement; less generally, it is a move- 
ment of a locomotor organism ; . . . The characteristic 
feature of the action consciousness, as distinguished 
from the consciousness so far considered, is its pre- 
determination in the sense of the idea of end. The 
presentation of the object arouses associative tenden- 
cies in the usual way ; but only those tendencies are 
realized which lie in the line of suggestion, of the 
meaning of the idea of end. 

" We translate this fact into physiology by saying 
that the excitatory processes underlying the idea of 
end set up determining tendencies ; they open certain 
nervous channels as it were, and close others ; so that 
the consequent excitations find their path laid out for 
them." ^ 

In ordinary usage of the term, activity means the 
contraction and relaxation of muscles in physical 
activity. For educational purposes, the meaning 

1 Titchener, E. B., " A Textbook in Psychology," pp. 448-449. The 
Macmillan Company, 1910. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 45 

should be broadened to include the situations defined 
by Dewey, ^^as a series of changes definitely adapted 
to accomplishing an end." 

" Hence it is opposed to restless and random changes, 
as well as to mere quiescence and passive absorption. 
Dictated exercises, ^ busy work,' etc., when not accom- 
panied by any sense of a result to which they naturally 
contribute, are not activity in its genuine, or intel- 
lectual significance ; neither is undirected overflow of 
motor impulse." ^ 

There are many different kinds of activity, intel- 
lectual, social, religious, and physical. The project 
does not limit itself to physical activities alone but 
makes provision for acts of other types, provided that 
the individual takes a part in the purpose, choice, and 
reflection of the directed action. Thus " physical ac- 
tivity when not accompanied by any sense of the 
result " is not considered activity, but intellectual 
activity when accompanied by a " sense of result " is 
considered an activity in an educational sense. 

In a recent article describing the problem-project 
method, W. B. Owen considers the psychology of the 
act an essential feature. 

" The third fundamental moment in the problem 
method is the psychology of action. This psychology 
is based on the anatomy of the nervous system. This 
nervous system consists of a series of five elements, 

^ Dewey, John, "Activity, Logical Theory and Educational Im- 
plications of." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education. 



46 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

sense organ, sensory nerve, brain, motor nerve, muscle. 
A complete act involves all five. Reflex and instinctive 
acts do not require thinking. Habitual acts may dis- 
pense with thinking. New situations, however, cannot 
be met by reflex, instinctive, or habitual reactions. 
The new problem requires thought for its solution. 
The brain suspends the activity of the series of the 
five elements until the right action is thought out. 
Once thought out, the series is restored and the act 
follows. If the right result follows, the problem is 
solved. But it takes a complete act to get a complete 
experience. Only the complete experience can test 
the value of the thought. That is why we learn by 
doing. The problem, therefore, calls for a new form 
of action, and thinking is the means of establishing 
this new form of action." ^ 

The importance of action is well summarized by 
W. B. Pillsbury : 

" Every once in a while one observes an individual 
who knows the right and approves, but does wrong. 
The only cure for this condition is to develop a habit of 
action. This can be done most effectually by making 
the child appreciate the advantages of action and the 
disadvantages of inaction. An individual left to take 
the natural consequences of his acts will soon develop 
a habit of doing the thing that he sees should be done, 
at the same time that it should be done. It is only 
the individuals who are protected from the conse- 
quences of inaction and indecision who continue in- 
active in the face of acknowledged duties. If a habit 

1 Owen, W. B., "The Problem Method." Chicago Schools Journal, 
Vol. 1, p. 5, 1918. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 47 

becomes established, there is no longer question whether 
a thing shall be done or not ; the situation at once 
evokes a decision and the decision evokes the act." ^ 

The educator, in giving emphasis to the different 
standards of teaching, should be certain that emphasis 
is not given to passivity and that pupils are not " pro- 
tected from the consequences of inaction " by the 
methods used in school. The project includes the act 
and gives a maximum of emphasis to training in action. 

The expression " problematic act '^ has been formu- 
lated and used in the definition of project for the 
distinct purpose of emphasizing not only the act but 
also the problematic aspect of the act. 

(h) It is essential that the project be understood to 
include a problem ; otherwise it could not be differen- 
tiated from habits and reflexes, as W. W. Charters well 
illustrates : 

" First, the project is a problem. This differenti- 
ates it from reflex and habitual acts such as digestion 
and respiration which are normally carried on without 
the intervention of consciousness, or from knitting or 
dishwashing, when they have become habitual. Any 
of these may become problems, as the control of respira- 
tion to the singer, or knitting to a novice. They are 
problems when they require thought but when they 
are reflexive or habitual they are no longer problems." ^ 

1 Pillsbury, W. B., "Essentials of Psychology," p. 312. The Mac- 
miUan Company, 1911. 

2 Charters, W. W., "The Project in Home Economics Teaching." 
The Journal of Home Economics, Vol. 10, p. 114, March, 1918. 



48 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Habits and reflexes such as the foregoing, since a 
problem is not involved, nor a difficulty demanding 
solution present, cannot be considered as acts in the 
sense which the project demands. 

The project may of course include habits and reflexes 
provided, in addition, that there is involved a problem 
or a situation, demanding reasoning for a solution, as 
the following illustration of controlling the San Jose 
scale will indicate. The lime-sulphur mixture may be 
decided upon as the most advisable remedy and the 
consequent purchase of lime and sulphur may take 
place habitually with a minimum of thought. The 
preparation of the solution and the actual spraying of 
the trees may be taken care of largely by habit. The 
problematic phase is included when the results of the 
treatment are watched carefully and a tentative judg- 
ment rendered as to its effectiveness, with a probable 
decision to vary the mixture or substitute a better 
remedy to meet the conditions. 

(c) The problem aspect of the project not only in- 
volves reasoning but contains a distinct implication 
of priority of the problem situation over the statement 
of principles. There are two methods of arriving at 
solutions or results as carried on in life ; the one is a 
knowledge of principles already learned as when the 
one making the solution knows the principles and then 
tries to apply them ; and the other, which we call the 
problem method, when the first approach is made by 
the learner to a difficulty. In the latter method prin- 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 49 

ciples are developed as needed, while in the former 
most of the principles have been learned and the 
problem is one of application. The problem method 
carries with it the implication that principles will be 
developed as needed and not learned first. Hence the 
project, which makes specific provision for the problem, 
lays emphasis on its priority over the statement of 
principles. 

The method of arriving at a solution, where the prin- 
ciples have been learned first and the problem is largely 
one of appljdng them, can with greater accuracy be 
called the original, laboratory exercise, application, or 
practicum. For instance, in connection with the study 
of vegetables, it may be proposed that each student 
prepare a garden and grow the vegetables. If this 
were done merely to illustrate or give a practical labora- 
tory exercise upon the principles learned in school it 
could be considered as an application or laboratory 
exercise. The practicum would differ only in the 
insistence that there should be some commercial value. 
The project would indicate and set the stage of the 
task, but most of the principles would be developed by 
the pupils as they needed them in the prosecution of 
their work. 

(d) The implication of the meaning of the term 
'' natural setting " has been discussed in Chapter I, and 
it is unnecessary here to go into detail other than to 
state that the project provides for the natural setti 
of situations, which means that the solutions u 




i&v-> 



50 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

taken in school are no different because they are school 
problems than they would be were they to come up 
in life outside the school. 

A statement of W. W. Charters shows the diflSculty 
in describing or defining natural setting : 

" The term natural setting is full of difficulties of 
definition when carried into the interior of any body of 
subject matter, but for our purposes [in home econom- 
ics] it is relatively simple as an illustration will make 
clear. The problem of canning may be carried into 
the field of practice by the canning of a small amount 
of fruit in small utensils, and the student may learn 
the practice of canning or perhaps it is better to say 
obtain a simple illustration of the practice. But this 
is not the natural setting of the action. The amount 
of fruit is unusual. If the student were canning at 
home she would have to can a peck or a bushel and 
would have to use several jars. The process is also 
unnaturally simple. If she were canning a bushel of 
fruit she would probably have simultaneously to watch 
a fire, get many jars ready, find proper places to set 
them, or attend to one portion while another is 
cooking." ^ 

A few additional illustrations of problems in natural 
setting may help clarify its significance. 

The determination of the profitable cows in the 

father's dairy herd may be undertaken by the boy, 

utilizing the scientific method taught in the school. He 

will be brought face to face with many difficulties in 

1 Charters, W. W., "The Project in Home Economics Teaching." 
The Journal of Home Economics, Vol. 10, p. 116, March, 1918. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 51 

keeping a daily record, in perfecting his methods, and 
in evolving his principles as he needs them in making 
the determination. While this may be a part of the 
school program, yet the setting is essentially identical 
with that of the dairyman who makes this test. 

The writer, in teaching the subject of machines to a 
mixed class, brought to the school yard for purposes 
of illustration a windlass, block pulleys, and a large 
board which could be used as an inclined plane. The 
members of the class were given problems in the 
manipulation of the pulleys and windlass to show the 
advantages of the machines. The whole lesson was 
interesting and probably more spectacular than a 
demonstration given in the laboratory with model 
pulleys and windlass. But while this lesson may have 
been effective, it could not be classed as a project, since 
the setting was artificial. One of the members of the 
class, however, had already been busy with the task of 
lifting baled hay into the barn loft with the aid of a 
single fixed pulley, which gave him the advantage of 
direction but nothing else. For him this exercise 
developed into a project, for he took up the problem 
which faced him, finding his principles and making 
the application, with the result that he installed a 
pulley in the loft with the ratio of 1:6. Later, he 
reported to the class the entire development of this 
project, laying particular emphasis on the ease of the 
task as compared with the difl&culty of the former 
procedure. For the boy this was a project, since the 



52 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

problem was carried into completion in its natural 
setting. 

There may be some question as to whether a pro- 
posed project begun in its natural setting, although 
not completed or even barely started in its natural 
setting; can be considered as meeting the requirement 
of carrying the act to completion in its natural setting. 
This question seems significant to propose, although 
the literature does not indicate its importance. The 
task begun but not completed in its natural situation 
is well shown in the following : A boy may have the 
problem of finding good seed corn for his father. He 
may become very much interested at the time in the 
method of testing seed corn because of the proposed 
purchase. If the boy takes some of the seed corn to 
the laboratory, tests it as a mere laboratory exercise, 
and stops there, he has the exercise arising in its 
natural setting but not carried to completion in its 
natural setting. This may be called an uncompleted 
project. If the boy had tested the seed sufficiently to 
be able to give his father scientific advice, the process 
would have constituted a project. Again, the growing 
of a few rows of potatoes may be the project accepted 
and the method of planting potatoes, the purchase of 
the seed, and the actual planting may go on, but if 
the task is given up for any reason, as when the potato 
bugs attack the plants, then the project is not com- 
pleted and may be called an incomplete project. The 
following year the boy may accept as his problem the 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 53 

method of destroying the potato-bug pest, and may 
find out how to do it, yet this will be termed a prob- 
lem because it was not handled in connection with the 
actual situation of controlling the pest. 

The act carried to completion in its natural setting 
indicates that the learner has used material and data 
in a way which is no different from what it would be 
were it done outside of school. He has thereby derived 
a greater functional value than if the act were not 
completed or completed in an artificial setting. 

The situations which were proposed in connection 
with the study of household science and agriculture 
will be considered in the light of the definition given 
for the project, to see if situations of this nature can 
be properly cared for by the project as defined and 
explained. 

The boy who controlled at least one pen of poultry 
with facilities for feeding a balanced ration and trap 
nesting individual birds for comparison of productivity 
in laying, would be brought into a situation which 
demands reasoning. The memory of information would 
not be sufficient to carry on this problem for the con- 
ditions as they change daily demand reasoning. The 
results of his investigation and the principles evolved 
as needed would result in the completion of the act in 
its natural setting. If the boy had become interested 
in the project, had started it, but had discontinued it 
after a few days or weeks, no results of any conse- 
quence would have been evident and it would have 



54 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

illustrated a situation arising in its natural setting but 
not carried to completion. 

The girls in household science who purchased and 
prepared well-balanced meals for the family for a 
specified time would be brought into many situations 
which demand reasoning. Since the conditions of 
these situations would change daily, reasoning rather 
than memory of information would be demanded. 
Principles and methods of procedure developed as 
needed would result in completing the act in its natural 
setting. 

To provide a concept which takes care of all such 
situations where emphasis must be given to reasoning, 
to carrying the act to completion (the modification of 
conduct), to the priority of the problem and to the 
natural setting for problems, the project, as defined by 
the writer, is satisfactory. 

IV. Criticism of Current Definitions 

Situations such as the foregoing have been recognized 
for a long time by educators as a type of educational 
problem which challenges attention, even though it has 
seemed difficult to devise a teaching unit which would 
handle such a situation. The pressing need of such a 
concept has led to discussion of the project with con- 
current definitions which vary more or less in inclusive- 
ness, but which indicate a search for a concept such as 
proposed. The literature dealing with the project, its 
significance and use, is quite extensive. The published 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 55 

definitions or characterization of the project, together 
with supplementary definitions received from writers 
at the request of the author, follow, together with 
criticisms and a summary. These definitions have 
been proposed by teachers who may be classified as 
follows : (1) general educational theory, (2) agricul- 
ture, (3) science, (4) industrial education, (5) Eng- 
lish, and (6) primary. The definitions will be given 
first according to this group classification. A discus- 
sion and comparison of each definition with the four 
standards which have been proposed in Chapter I will 
follow. 

(a) Definitions Proposed by Teachers Interested in 
General Educational Theory 

Charters' View of the Project. — " The project is 
considered to be an act carried to completion in its 
natural setting and involving the solution of a rela- 
tively complex problem. '^ ^ 

This definition by Charters gives specific emphasis to 
the problematic phase of the project which distinguishes 
it from habits and reflexes. Mental processes are con- 
sidered to be problems when they involve thinking. 
In another paper Charters, in discussing the topical 
method, calls attention to the weakness of this method 
of confining most of the mental activity largely to 
memory. Again, in this same paper he states that 

1 Charters, W. W., "The Project in Home Economics Teaching." 
The Journal of Home Economics, Vol. 10, p. 114, March, 1918. 



56 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" the prime essentials of the project are, that it must 
involve the solution of a problem and that it must 
culminate in action." ^ The act carried to completion 
is a recognition by Charters that conduct is favored 
over information as an end in itself. The priority of 
the problem over statement of principles is indicated 
by the author in the paper, " Systematic Topics, Multi- 
Problems and Projects '^ : 

" In the topical organization principles are learned 
first, while in the project, the problems are proposed 
which demand in the solution the development of prin- 
ciples by the learner as needed." ^ 

The natural situation for problems is one of the main 
elements in the definition. In citing other advantages 
for the project, the writer indicates that " it gives 
training in locating and solving problems, it gives 
training in the technique of action, and it teaches 
subject matter in connection with life situations." 

The definition proposed by Charters designates the 
act as complex. This statement seems to limit its 
scope. There may be certain activities which can very 
well be classed under the term " project " and yet be 
relatively simple. For example, the girl who decides 
to make a special loaf of bread and who develops new 
principles as needed in carrying this simple act to com- 

1 Charters, W. W., "Systematic Topics, Multi-Problems and Proj- 
ects." Paper read before Illinois State Teachers' Association, Dec. 28, 
1917. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 57 

pletion, is carrying out a solution which is a project. 
If such situations are not included under the term 
^' project '^ another term would be demanded, which 
would surely lead to confusion, particularly in the 
distinction of simple acts and complex acts. 

The definition suggested by Charters, then, includes 
the four standards of teaching but seems to limit its 
scope in including only relatively complex problems. 

Kilpatrick's Proposals. — The following definition is 
proposed by W. H. Kilpatrick : 

" The term ^ project ^ contemplates a complete act 
(or experience) which the agent projects, purposes^ and 
within limits sees through to completion." ^ 

Since the learner projects and purposes the solution 
it seems evident that more emphasis is placed on reason- 
ing than on reproductive memory. In projecting a 
solution conditions will vary ; new situations will arise 
which demand some degree of reasoning. The com- 
plete act is contemplated but apparently not enough 
emphasis is laid on carrying the act to completion, for 
the latter part of the definition indicates that there are 
limitations in carrying it through. Since conduct is 
modified to the extent that the act is carried to com- 
pletion, we seem warranted in making the statement 
that the maximum modification of conduct is not a 
significant element in this definition. There seems to 

1 Kilpatrick, W. H. Definition proposed in a letter to the writer, 
March 21, 1918. 



58 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

be a slight inconsistency in the definition, for if the 
project contemplates a complete act, it would seem that 
the realization of a complete act would be necessary 
rather than an approximation to one, as indicated in 
the phrase, " within limits sees through to completion." 
The priority of the problem over the statement of 
principles and the provision for the natural setting of 
the problem are not clearly indicated. The definition 
by Kilpatrick includes provision for reasoning and for 
the completion of the act " within limits," but makes 
no clear provision for the natural setting of problems 
or the priority of the problem over the statement of 
principles. 

In a published article appearing after the above 
definition was sent to the writer, Kilpatrick defines 
the project as a " wholehearted purposeful activity 
proceeding in a social environment, or more briefly in 
the unit element of such activity, the hearty purposeful 
act." 

" It is to this purposeful act with the emphasis on 
the word purpose that I myself apply the term 
' project.' "1 

An illustration of the term "project" or "hearty 
purposeful act " is cited. 

" Suppose a girl makes a dress, if she planned it, if 
she made it herself, then I should say the instance is 

1 Kilpatrick, W. H., "The Project Method." Teachers College 
Record, Vol. 19, No. 4, September, 1918, p. 320. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 59 

that of a typical project. We have a wholehearted 
purposeful act carried on amid social surroundings. 
That the dressmaking was purposeful is clear ; the 
purpose once formed dominated each succeeding step 
in the process and gave unity to the will. That the 
girl was wholehearted in the work was assured in the 
illustration. That the activity proceeded in a social 
environment is clear; other girls at least are to see 
the dress." ^ 

Since the learner plans the solution with whole- 
hearted activity it would seem that reasoning is given 
more emphasis than the memory of information (repro- 
ductive memory). In planning and carr3dng through 
the solution, new situations will arise, conditions will 
vary, which will demand reasoning. Apparently the 
act carried to completion is contemplated ; this is in- 
dicated by the illustration of the girl making the dress. 
" Suppose a girl makes a dress, if she planned it, if she 
made it herself, then I should say the instance is that 
of a typical project. '^ Note that the illustration men- 
tions the completion of the dress. It is probable that 
the complete act is considered, for the definition does 
explicitly state " wholehearted purposeful activity pro- 
ceeding in a social environment." The definition pro- 
vides for the activity being carried on but not 
necessarily completed unless the expression in the latter 
part of the definition takes care of this " or more briefly, 

iKilpatrick, W. H., "The Project Method." Teachers College 
Record, Vol. 19, No. 4, September, 1918, p. 321. 



60 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

in the unit element of such activity, the hearty purpose- 
ful act.'^ While the illustration seems to indicate that 
.the act is carried to completion, it would be more 
clarifying to have it explicitly stated in the definition. 
The priority of the problem over, the statement of 
principles and provisions for the natural setting of the 
problem are included in the definition. The natural 
setting is probably taken care of by Kilpatrick in his 
insistence that the activity proceed in a ^' social en- 
vironment." The use of the term " social environ- 
ment " is somewhat confusing owing to the different 
meanings which the term ^^ social '^ has taken on. Con- 
sequently it is difficult to determine whether or not 
'' social environment " as used by Kilpatrick fulfills 
the requirements of " natural setting " as used by the 
writer. Any act is social which has any relation to 
anyone else. The antithesis of this is non-social. Social 
may mean cooperation — the sharing of purposes, 
ends, or aims. Anti-social is the antithesis of this 
meaning of social. Again, social means understanding, 
appreciating the motives, desires, ambitions, and im- 
pulses of others. The probable antithesis of this mean- 
ing of social is formal " righteousness " like that of the 
Pharisees. If social were to be interpreted broadly, as 
in the first meaning of social, then " social environ- 
ment " would approximate the meaning of "natural 
setting." He considers the " purposeful act " a typical 
unit of the worthy life and " as the purposeful act is 
thus the typical unit of the worthy life in a democratic 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 61 

society, so also should it be made the typical unit of 
school procedure. We of America have for years in- 
creasingly desired that education be considered as life 
itself and not as a mere preparation for later living." ^ 
Kilpatrick, in this definition, makes provision for 
reasoning ; for carrying the act to completion (although 
not specifically stated in the definition, but provided for 
in the illustrations) ; for the natural setting of problem 
(activity to proceed in a " social environment '^) ; and 
for the priority of the problem over the statement of 
principles. 

Bobbitt's Suggestions. — Although Bobbitt does 
not specifically define the project in his study of the 
curriculum, yet he gives an illustration of the project 
method which may well be examined to see the ele- 
ments which he includes in the term ^^ project." 

^^ On the work-level, the task to be performed is 
central ; and the science is organized about it. A boy, 
for example, in the school shop wishes to construct and 
operate a telegraphic apparatus. This ambition will 
serve as the center of the science training. He will be 
motivated to gather information concerning batteries, 
wiring, electro-magnets, making and breaking of cir- 
cuits, etc. He will learn just the things that he needs 
for the task in hand ; and nothing more at the time. 
Through using his ideas in the planning and in the 
actual construction he comes to realize the full signifi- 
cance of the various facts. The derived interest 

iKilpatrick, W. H., "The Project Method." Teachers College 
Record, Vol. 19, No. 4, September, 1918, p. 323. 



62 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

aroused is for most individuals more potent than the 
native interest in the abstract science facts and prin- 
ciples. For this reason the knowledge is more effec- 
tively driven home and remembered. 

'^ There is a strong drift in public education toward 
this project-method of organization. The school corn 
clubs, for example, assemble all possible information 
relative to the growth of corn and use it for the control 
of practical procedure. . . . The tree-protecting league 
gathers all possible facts concerning the species of trees 
attacked by insects, fungi, etc., together with the 
scientific information needed for combating the destruc- 
tive influences. They reject for the time all botanical 
or entomological information that has no bearing on 
the problem in hand. ... In brief, one learns the 
things needed for directing action in connection with 
the situations in which the action is to take place, and 
just previous to the drawing up of the plans. Only 
under such circumstances can knowledge properly reveal 
its significance, be rightly focused upon human affairs, 
or be normally assimilated. Knowing and doing should 
grow up together." ^ 

Since the learner plans the solution and in its de- 
velopment gathers information, it is clear that reason- 
ing is given a more prominent place than memory of 
information. In planning and carrying out the solution 
reasoning will be used and the true significance of the 
facts will be realized. " Through using his ideas in 
the planning and in the actual construction he comes 

1 Bobbitt, Franklin, " The Curriculum," p. 30. Houghton Mifflin 
Company, 1918. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 63 

to realize the full significance of the various facts." 
The act carried to completion is implied by Bobbitt. 
In the quotation in this paragraph he mentions " the 
actual construction/' which seems to show that the 
act carried to completion is made a part of the project 
idea. Again, the act is considered. '' In brief, one 
learns the things needed for directing action in con- 
nection with the situations in which the action is to 
take place, and just previous to the drawing up of the 
plans." Since the act is carried to completion, con- 
duct is modified more than if the memory of informa- 
tion for its own sake were emphasized. 

The problem is given priority over the statement of 
principles. In the illustrations which Bobbitt cites, 
principles are learned as needed in the solution as this 
quotation indicates. " He will learn just the things 
he needs for the task in hand " and again he suggests 
that the " primary thing in the student's consciousness 
is the project, the piece of work to be done; not the 
satisfaction of intellectual interests." The natural set- 
ting for the problem seems to be included in Bobbitt's 
description and illustration of the project, although 
this is not specifically emphasized. 

The elements included by the writer in the project 
idea are taken care of in Bobbitt's illustrations. The 
modification of conduct and the priority of the problem 
are illustrated, while the natural setting for the problem 
and the act carried to completion, although not specifi- 
cally mentioned, seem to be elements. 



64 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Stone's Definition. — In order to understand clearly 
the definition proposed by C. W. Stone : ^^ A project 
is a Life Topic in which the processes and objects of 
learning are largely manual/' ^ additional quotations will 
be given, showing the author's meaning of the terms 
used. " Life Topics " may be variously defined as, 

" Units of learners' experience in which both learners 
and teachers recognize worthy value. 

" Units of learners' experience that are worthy of 
re-making in terms of more formal subject matter. 

" Units of learners' experience out of which the more 
formal subject matter may be differentiated. 

" Phases of life that are worthy of improvement. 

" A consideration of these definitions leads one im- 
mediately to an analysis of life value, and a helpful 
analysis is in terms of thinking, doing, and feeling : 
for it is in these three lines that we do our living and 
have our experience. A Life Topic, then, in which 
thinking predominates, evidently holds values that are 
to an extent different and distinguishable from the 
value of a Life Topic in which doing predominates ; 
and a Life Topic in which feeling is the important 
value is also distinguishable from either of the above. 
The terms which seem best to fit these three types of 
Life Topics are "problem," "project," and "appre- 
ciation unit." The definitions of these terms may be 
worded, then : 

" A ^ problem ' is a Life Topic (unit of learners' ex- 
perience) in which the processes and objects of learning 
are largely mental. 

1 Stone, C. W., " Teaching Units." Summary sent to writer, 
March 21, 1918. ' ' 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 65 

" A ' project ' is a Life Topic in which the processes 
and objects of learning are largely manual. 

" An ^ appreciation unit ' is a Life Topic in which 
the processes and objects of learning are largely 
emotional. 

"It should not, of course, be understood that there 
will be no manual elements in a problem or that there 
will be no thinking in a project ; much less would it 
be safe to come to the conclusion that there will be 
no appreciation in problems and projects." ^ 

The definition outlined by Stone makes provision 
for reasoning, but the wording states negatively that 
there may be reasoning but not positively that it must 
be included : "It should not, of course, be under- 
stood . . . that there will be no thinking in a project." 
Life Topics defined as " phases of life that are worthy 
of improvement and in which the learner recognizes a 
worthy value," indicate that the modification of con- 
duct has been considered. Another example shows 
that the completed act is an element in the definition : 

" In a community in which cotton will mature it is 
best studied as a project, and the work will include the 
raising of the plant, picking of the fibre, simple ginning, 
etc." 2 

The natural setting finds its implication in the 
writer's use of the Life Topic, which gives to the proj- 
ect the settinT, that an activity would have if taken up 



1 Stone, C. W., " Teaching Units." Summary sent to writer, 
March 21, 1918> 



66 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

out of school. The priority of the problem over the 
statement of principles is indicated in the definition 
of Life Topics as " units of the learners' experience 
that are worthy of re-making in terms of more formal 
subject matter." It is quite likely that the statement 
of principles first would indicate what Stone means by 
formal subject matter. 

Snedden's Use of the Term. — Among the men in 
Massachusetts who used the term " project '' in connec- 
tion with agricultural teaching particularly as applied 
to the home project, none was more prominent in this 
leadership than David Snedden. The discussions and 
uses of the project made by Snedden are discussed 
under this first classification rather than under the 
definitions proposed by men interested in agricultural 
education because of Snedden's interest in and con- 
tributions to general educational theory. His descrip- 
tion of the term '^ project " is cited : 

" A few years ago some of us began using the word 
project to describe a unit of educative work in which 
the most prominent feature was some, form of positive 
and concrete achievement. The baking of a loaf of 
bread, the making of a shirtwaist, the raising of a bushel 
of corn, the making of a table, the installation of an 
electric-bell outfit — all these, when undertaken by 
learners, and when so handled as to result in a large 
acquisition of knowledge and experience, were called 
projects. Projects of this kind might be individual or 
joint (cooperative). They might be executed in an 
ordinary lesson period or they might claim the efforts 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 67 

of the learner for one or more hours per day for several 
weeks. 

" The following were the primary characteristics of 
projects as thus conceived : (a) the undertaking always 
possessed a certain unity ; (h) the learner himself clearly 
conceived the practical end or outcome to be attained, 
and it was always expected that this outcome was full 
of interest to him, leading him on, as to a definite goal 
to be won ; (c) the standards of achievement were 
clearly objective — so much so that the learner and 
his fellows could, in large part, render valuable decisions 
as to the worth — in an amateur or in a commercial 
sense — of the product ; and (d) the undertaking was 
of such a nature that the learner, in achieving his 
desired ends, would necessarily have to apply much 
of his previous knowledge and experience — perhaps 
heretofore not consciously held as usable in this way 
{e.g. art, science, mathematics, special tool-skill) — 
and probably would have to acquire also some new 
knowledges and skills. In a sense any concrete job 
undertaken in a vocational school where the realiza- 
tion of valuable results in the product constitutes an 
important end, might be called a ' project ' but to be an 
' educational project ' such a job (e.g. . . . wiring a 
room, growing a half-acre of potatoes, etc.) must be 
of such a nature as to offer large opportunity, not only 
for the acquisition of new skill and experience in prac- 
tical manipulation, but also for applications of old, and 
learning of new, ' related knowledge,' art, science, 
mathematics, administration, hygiene, social science, 
etc.'' 1 

^ Snedden, David, " Project as a Teaching Unit," School and Society, 
Vol. IV, pp. 420-421, 1916. 



68 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The particular element which Snedden seems to 
emphasize in the project is " some form of positive and 
concrete achievement." Much attention is given to 
the application of knowledge previously learned. 
Although there is a suggestion that new knowledge and 
principles will be developed as needed, the definition 
indicates that probably new knowledges and skills 
would be acquired. Both the application of old knowl- 
edge and the acquisition of new are recognized in the 
statement in which he suggests that an " educational 
project " must be of such a nature as to offer oppor- 
tunities not only for the acquisition of new knowledge 
but also for the application of the old. 

The fact that Snedden emphasizes positive achieve- 
ment so strongly implies that the act must be com- 
pleted, the work carried to a conclusion ; thus modifying 
conduct maximally as contrasted with the memory of 
information for its own sake. Reasoning is emphasized 
because the individual must carry out the project under 
varying conditions, applying old knowledge, develop- 
ing new, as the situations demanded. While the 
natural setting for problems is not mentioned as a 
part of Snedden's definition, yet the illustrations cited 
(growing a half-acre of potatoes, taking commercial 
charge of three cows for a year, wiring a room) would 
seem to justify the statement that he does make the 
natural setting an element in the project. The priority 
of the problem over the statement of principles is not 
considered to be essential by Snedden, in fact the 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 69 

project in his opinion applies principles already learned 
and in carrying the work to completion develops new 
ones. The definition and use of the project as out- 
lined by Snedden is limited in scope, for seemingly only 
acts which demand manual activities are considered 
projects. This would make it difficult to provide 
projects in civics, sociology, and English. 

(b) Definitions Proposed by Men Interested in 
Agricultural Education 

Stimson, Allen, and Prosser. — Several definitions 
or characterizations have resulted from the extensive 
use of projects in the field of agriculture. The defini- 
tion by Stimson, Allen, and Prosser is as follows : 

" Finally, a farming project, as the term is here used, 
is a thing to be done on a farm, which, in the prepara- 
tion for doing it and the carrying of it out to a success- 
ful result, would involve a thoroughgoing educational 
process. A complete definition of a ^ project ' as here 
used has three elements. . . . (l) something to be done 
on a farm, (2) under specified conditions and for a 
specified valuable result, and (3) requiring a thorough- 
going training. The farming project may include (l) 
improvement projects ; (2) experimental projects ; and 
(3) productive projects." ^ 

* Report of the Board of Education of Massachusetts on Agri- 
cultural Education, 1911, pp. 41-43. Also reported in Stimson, 
R. W., "The Massachusetts Home Project Plan of Vocational Agri- 
cultural Education," U. S. Bureau of Education, Bulletin 579, p. 13, 
1914. 



70 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

This definition makes a specific place for the natural 
setting of problems ; they are connected with the farm 
and its activities. The project modifies conduct in 
laying emphasis on carrying the act to completion 
"for a specified valuable result " ; and reasoning is 
implied in the statement that it must involve " a 
thoroughgoing educational process.'' The meaning of 
this expression is uncertain, but since the conditions of 
the projects outlined vary, and the pupil must make 
his own decisions under these varying conditions, 
reasoning as over against memory is certainly implied 
as a necessary element. 

The definition does not indicate the priority of the 
problem over the statement of principles but Stimson 
seems to indicate this in the following quotation : 

" The training of the boy who desires a vocational 
agricultural diploma includes, as we have seen, the 
subject study of English, history, civics, botany, 
chemistry, and general agricultural subjects, such as 
soils, tillage, and crop rotation. That this subject 
study does not precede but accompanies or follows 
the boy's project study directly and decidedly enhances 
its value." ^ 

This, of course, does not state that the priority of 
the problem over the statement of principles is always 
desirable. In another statement, however, Stimson 

1 Stimson, R. W., " The Massachusetts Home Project Plan of Vo- 
cational Agricultural Education," U. S. Bureau of Education, Bulletin 
579, p. 37, 1914. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 71 

implies that the project is looked upon as a means of 
illustrating and using principles already known as well 
as to develop new principles and acquire new knowl- 
edge : 

" The movement from observed data of agricultural 
production to general laws and principles is followed by 
the reverse movement, which is embodied in the ap- 
plication of the laws and principles of science — 
embodied, that is to say, in economic agricultural 
enterprises conducted by the pupils on their home 
farms under competent school supervision." ^ 

W. H. French. — In a report on agriculture in the 
high schools of Michigan, published in 1916, W. H. 
French gives a definition and illustrations : 

" The ' home project ' may be defined as a piece of 
farm work selected by the student with which to illus- 
trate some theory, or to demonstrate some plan of 
procedure which has been presented in the course of 
the school instruction. For instance, a certain theory 
has been presented in regard to corn culture, and the 
boy undertakes to raise an acre or more of corn in 
accordance with the instruction. This would con- 
stitute a home project. Or if a certain plan of raising 
alfalfa had been taught, the boy would elect to demon- 
strate the truth of the teaching by raising a plot of 
alfalfa ; or the necessity for keeping a record of milk 
or butter production of dairy cows has been taught in 
school, and the boy undertakes to keep a record of each 

1 Stimson, R. W., " The Massachusetts Home Project Plan of Vo- 
cational Agricultural Education," U. S. Bureau of Education, Bulletin 
579, p. 38, 1914. 



72 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

COW in his father's herd for the season to show whether 
they are profitable animals to keep on the farm." ^ 

The project as conceived by French carries the act 
to completion in its natural setting and thus provides 
for the modification of conduct, but the definition does 
not provide for the priority of the problem over the 
statement of principles ; on the contrary, he considers 
that the project is a piece of work selected to illustrate 
some principles already studied or learned. Reasoning 
is provided for only on the basis of applying principles. 
According to the standards that we have set up, 
such exercises could not be classed as projects, but 
could very well be brought under the term " practi- 
cum," meaning by this application of principles with 
the emphasis on the economic value of the product. 

Barrows, Lane, and Heald. — The definition and 
characterization of the term ^^ project'' has been dis- 
cussed at some length by H. P. Barrows, C. H. Lane, 
and F. E. Heald of the United States Department of 
Agriculture. This formulation is evidently the cooper- 
ative work of the three men : 

'' The term ' home project ' applied to instruction in 
elementary and secondary agriculture includes each 
of the following requisites : (1) There must be a plan 
for work at home covering a season or a more or less 

1 French, W. H., Report of Agriculture in the High Schools of 
Michigan, 1916. Also quoted in Lane, C. H., "Aims and Methods of 
Project Work in Secondary Agriculture," School Science and Mathe- 
matics, Vol. 17, pp. 805-806, December, 1917. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 73 

extended period of time ; (2) it must be a part of the 
instruction in agriculture of the school ; (3) there must 
be a problem more or less new to the pupil ; (4) the 
parents and pupil should agree with the teacher upon 
the plan; (5) some competent person must supervise 
the home work ; (6) detailed records of time, method, 
cost, and income must be honestly kept ; and (7) a 
written report based on the record must be submitted 
to the teacher. This report may be in the form of a 
composition or a booklet." ^ 

^' A distinction should be drawn between a project 
and a simple exercise used as a practicum to illustrate 
some principle, or for the purpose of increasing skill in 
some operation of farm or shop. A project, to be 
worthy of the name should involve skill in many opera- 
tions, and the application of a number of principles. 
To accomplish this it should cover a branch of farming 
that will extend over a comparatively long period of 
time. The testing of seed corn may be cited as an 
example of a simple laboratory exercise performed at 
school. The stringing of seed corn would be a suitable 
home practicum, the aim of which would be to acquire 
skill in a useful operation. The growing of an acre of 
corn would involve both of these operations and many 
others, hence it would be a worthy project." ^ 

1 Lane, C. H. and Heald, F. E. U. S. Department of Agriculture, 
BuUetin 281, States Relations Service, p. 1, Aug. 12, 1915. Barrows, 
H. P. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bulletin 346, States Re- 
lations Service, p. 4, Feb. 21, 1916. Heald, F. E., "The Project 
in Agricultural Education," General Science Quarterly, Vol. 1, p. 166, 
March, 1917. Lane, C. H., "Aims and Methods of Project Work in 
Secondary Agriculture," School Science and Mathematics, Vol. 17, p. 807, 
December, 1917. 

2 Barrows, H. P. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bulletin 346, 
States Relations Service, p. 4, Feb. 21, 1916. 



74 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

In explanation of the seven requisites of a home 
project, Heald in another article says : 

(1) " The plan must have an aim which is in accord 
with the general scheme of work, in which the pupil 
has an interest at the outset and in which there is some 
problem more or less new. The person who approves 
the project at the outset should have some broader 
view of the applications and should shape the general 
plan accordingly. 

(2) " The project should involve principles already 
studied or which are studied concurrently with the 
practice. The discoveries of others should be found 
out, either by observation or by reference study, and 
records of these should be compiled. Problems, prac- 
ticums, demonstrations and occasional experiments may 
be necessary as a part of the project. These in them- 
selves may be within the dictionary definition of the 
term project but we have already these other terms 
in the vocabulary of education. The exact line of 
demarcation between a short project and a longer prac- 
ticum may as well be left undecided, but the tendency 
to give to everything which may be ^ projected ' or 
planned the name project is unnecessarily confusing. 

(3) " The records and reports covering each of the 
steps or processes with final conclusions or results 
should be preserved. All of these points will apply, 
whether the project is for an individual or a group ; at 
school, at home, or elsewhere in the community. To 
start with a definite aim, to do certain correlated lines 
of work covering a fairly extensive field or period of 
time, and to bring together everything bearing on the 
main aim are essential points in a project." ^ 

1 Heald, F. E., "The 'Project' in Agricultural Education," General 
Science Quarterly, Vol. 1, pp. 167-168, March, 1917. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 75 

This characterization of the project, with the addi- 
tional explanations, shows that reasoning is favored 
over the mere memory of information, for the writers 
consider it essential that some " problem more or less 
new " be present, that the natural setting be provided 
for in making the projects apply to the farm, and that 
conduct be modified, for the completed act is assumed. 
The writers, however, do not make the priority of the 
problem over the statement of principles an essential 
factor (" The project should involve principles already 
studied or which are studied concurrently with the 
practice "); hut all agree that there should be a new 
problem involved in the project. 

In a later paper, Heald does not place emphasis on 
the project being used to illustrate or involve principles 
already studied. One essential of the project is " a 
carefully drawn plan covering a considerable extent 
of time, with a definite aim, including some problems 
new to the pupil and outlining with sufficient detail 
the methods to be employed." ^ Again, this statement 
seems to show that much emphasis is placed on the 
development of principles as needed. " As a fact, many 
of the lessons which the boy learns best are the outcome 
of emergencies which he faces in his project and must 
look up at once to save his crop." ^ 

^ Heald, F. E., "The Home Project as a Phase of Vocational Agri- 
cultural Education," p. 9. 
2 Ibid., p. 17. 



76 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

(c) Definitions Proposed by Teachers of Science 

The project has been developed and used somewhat 
extensively by teachers of science, yet very few defini- 
tions have appeared and even these probably could 
better be termed characterizations. The most compre- 
hensive formulation has been given by C. R. Mann : 

"(1) A desire to understand the meaning and use of 
some fact, phenomenon, or experience. This leads to 
questions and problems. (2) A conviction that it is 
worth while and possible to secure an understanding 
of the thing in question. This causes one to work 
with an impelling interest. (3) The gathering from 
experience, books, and experiments of the needed in- 
formation, and the application of this information to 
answer the question in hand." ^ 

A few citations from the writings of John F. Wood- 
hull will give his views of the project method in science : 

" The purpose of science teaching in all grades of 
schools is not chiefly to impart knowledge of subject 
matter but to train persons in the method of the 
masters, which is invariably the project method. This 
is the method used by intelligent men in achieving 
their ends, in school or out." ^ 

"The real way to learn fundamental principles is to 
attack those problems of which life is full for each 

1 Quoted by Woodhull, John F., "The Aims and Methods of Science 
Teaching," General Science Quarterly, Vol. 2, pp. 249-250, November, 
1917. 

2 Woodhull, John F., " The Aims and Methods of Science Teaching," 
General Science Quarterly, Vol. 2, p. 249, November, 1917. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 77 

individual, not through the preparatory fallacy called 
the scientific method, but by a ^ forked road situation/ 
The school should prepare pupils to walk alone by 
attacking real problems as Archimedes, Galileo, Davy, 
Faraday, Pasteur, Tyndall, and all the rest did. Most 
of us know, if we would think back over our experiences, 
that we never really learn these so-called fundamental 
principles until they come to us as an interpretation of 
some of our life's problems." ^ 

^' The great masters of science, Galileo, Faraday, 
Pasteur, Darwin, etc., illustrated in all their lives and 
work the project method. The intelligent man illus- 
trates it in all his work outside the field of education. 
High-school pupils use the project method in all of 
their self-directed work outside of school. But when 
the schoolmaster undertakes to direct the pursuit for 
knowledge, he formalizes, he systematizes, he schema- 
tizes, and invariably inverts the natural order of learn- 
ing. The result is that our young people are getting 
their real science through various outside agencies." ^ 

Woodhull indicates that the project method is 
nothing more nor less than the method of the scientist 
adapted to children. In order to get a better notion 
of Woodhull's conception of the project it is necessary 
to determine just what is the method of the scientist. 
Morris Meister of Columbia University gives the fol- 
lowing analysis of the scientist at work which illustrates 

1 Woodhull, J. F., "Science Teaching by Projects," School Science 
and Mathematics, Vol. 15, p. 229, 1915. 

2 Woodhull, J. F., " The Teaching of Science," p. 233. The Mac- 
miUan Company, 1918. 



78 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

or describes more specifically the concept which Wood- 
hull terms " the method of the Science Masters " : 

" (1) That he begins in a state of perplexity. 

" (2) That he works with an intense enthusiasm 
because this perplexity is the result of a real, pressing, 
vital difl&culty. 

^' (3) Once the difficulty is clearly defined his en- 
thusiasm carries him to a solution by a process which 
is automatic but which can be described as : 

" (a) A process of rapid suggestion, supposition, 
guess, hypothesis, or theory — pending further evi- 
dence. (6) * Reasoning out ' the implications of each 
suggestion, (c) Deliberately and cleverly arranging 
conditions in accord with the requirements of any of 
the suggestions to see what results occur and to weed 
out the false suggestions. 

^' The superiority of such an analysis over one which 
sets up certain definite steps lies in its implications for 
the teacher. The whole of life can be thought of as 
a series of problems or hurdles, the series progressing 
from the simple needs of childhood to the intellectual 
needs of the educated adult. This line of growth can- 
not be short-circuited, for each step is prerequisite for 
each succeeding one. The teacher's task becomes 
simple and yet difficult ; simple, because he must 
merely commence the process by so controlling the 
situation that a need or problem will arise for the child 
— the rest, within certain limits, are the capacities of 
the child ; and to properly gauge these and take them 
into account requires teaching ability of a high order. 
" The great evils of the science teaching of to-day are 
dT^e chiefly to the adherence of science teachers to a 
false analysis of the method of the scientists. The 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 79 

formal logical steps of Bacon or Mill or some^f the 
other metaphysicians attack the problem from the 
wrong end; as far as the educator is concerned. It is 
Dewey's analysis of thought which I have attempted 
to apply to the work of the scientists that I believe will 
solve the problem of science teaching." ^ 

Another statement by WoodhuU is pertinent to this 
discussion : 

" A project, or problem, differs from and is superior 
to a topic in that (l) a project originates in some 
question and not in such a logical sequence of ideas 
as may be found in codified matter. In teaching from 
the so-called ^ logical ' texts one wrongly attempts to 
induce the pupils to accept topics as their own projects. 
Logical organizations of such material as functions in 
life will be the final result of a protracted study of 
projects. (2) The project involves the active and 
motivated participation of the pupil in carrying it 
out. It does not, therefore, like the topic, lend itself 
to didactic, formal treatment in which the teacher 
does all the thinking and the pupil passively absorbs. 
(3) Projects furnish a basis for the selection of facts 
according to value or significance, topics furnish no 
such basis for selection. (4) The project seldom ends 
in a complete, final or absolutely finished conclusion." ^ 

J. A. Drushel, science teacher in Harris Teachers' 
College, St. Louis, Missouri, proposes this definition : 

1 Meister, Morris, "The Method of Scientists," School Science and 
M'athematics, Vol. 18, pp. 743-745, 1918. 

2 Woodhull, John F., "The Aims and Methods of Science Teaching," 
General Science Quarterly, Vol. 2, p. 2, November, 1917. 



80 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" A project is a concrete problem outlined sufficiently 
fully and clearly to enable the student, for whom it is 
designed, to carry it out." ^ 

Another definition of a school project has been 
formulated by J. A. Randall, Department of Physics, 
Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, New York : 

" A problem the solution of which results in the 
production of some object, or knowledge of such value 
to the worker as to make the labor involved seem to 
him worth while." ^ 

The definitions proposed in the field of science agree 
in that the project involves a problematic situation ; 
in fact, Woodhull does not differentiate between the 
project and the problem, but Randall and Woodhull 
alone lay emphasis on carrying the act to completion. 
Randall makes no provision for the naturar setting of 
the problem. The situations outlined by Mann and 
Woodhull may be properly classed as multi-problems,^ 
by Drushel as applications, while RandalFs definition 
covers most of the elements which have been con- 
sidered essential to the project, with the exception 
that the natural setting for the problem is not specifi- 
cally indicated. 

1 Drushel, J. A. Definition sent to writer by Supt. John W. Withers, 
St. Louis, Mo., March 23, 1918. 

2 Randall, J. A., "Project Teaching," Proc. N. E. A., p. 1010, 1915. 
' Multi-problems will be discussed and defined in ch, iv. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 81 

(d) The Use of the Project in Industrial Education 

The use of the project in industrial and vocational 
education has been developed by C. R. Allen and 
defined as follows : 

" In the simplest and most general sense in which 
the term, can be used, a project is a problem involving 
the discharge of a responsibility on the part of a given 
individual or group of individuals. It requires an 
intelligent application of knowledge or an exercise of 
skill, or both, in order that something may be ac- 
complished." ^ 

This takes into consideration in a general way the 
elements which our proposed definition considers. 
However, attention must be called to the fact that 
there is seemingly undue emphasis placed on the ap- 
plication of knowledge and principles rather than on 
the development of principles as needed in the prosecu- 
tion of the solution. To give undue emphasis to this 
phase would mean that AUen^s definition of project is 
nothing more than the description of a practical appli- 
cation. Allen in another statement, however, indicates 
that his term ^^ project " means more than this. 

'' In the field of vocational education the meaning of 
the term project becomes still more specific, in that it 
implies that the ' core ' of the project lies in the field 
of the ' shop experience.' The project is built up 

1 Allen, C. R., "The Project Method and the Combination of the 
Project Method with the Phase System of Trading and Promoting." 
Massachusetts Board of Education, Bulletin 75, p. 46. 



82 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

around doing a job. Any job assigned to a boy in the 
machine shop may be made the center of requirements 
which will call upon him to deal with ^ elements ' 
representing the entire program of that department. 

^' If, instead of merely having him do the job as a 
purely production problem, we ask him in connection 
with the job to find out why he is using a certain kind 
of steel on that job, that is a lesson in materials of 
trade. If we ask him to figure his cutting speed, that 
is a problem in mathematics. If we ask him to find 
out how the power is transmitted from the speed 
pulley to the cutter spindle, that is a problem in 
relatable mechanics or science. If we ask him to find 
out whether before there were any millers this particu- 
lar job would have been done at the bench with a file 
or with a saw, or whether it could have been done at 
all, that is a lesson in the history of that trade. If 
we ask him to figure out the cost of his stock, we have 
a related problem in applied arithmetic. If we ask 
him to use a time card, or fill out a stock order, we are 
giving him a lesson in shop management. It is pos- 
sible to organize the requirements around any piece 
of shop work in the case of an individual pupil that 
small portions of any or all of the subjects to be in- 
cluded in his equipment will be represented in that 
pupil's experience in connection with that particular 
job, and that those necessary portions of all or any 
of these relatable or trade technical subjects will be 
brought to his attention at a time when they function 
directly and immediately upon the work in hand. 
When this is done, we say the boy is working on a 
project, and this method of instruction is called the 
project method. 

^' In order that projects may serve a progressively 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 83 

educational purpose they must be so organized as con- 
tinually to present new difl&culties and offer new oppor- 
tunities for achievement. For example^ when the 
* milling project ' just discussed makes no demands 
on the boy for the acquisition of new knowledge, if 
he already knew how to take a rough cut on a miller, 
and could correctly solve the related problems included 
in the project, we would still have a project, but not 
one involving the acquisition of new knowledge. 

" The project as used purely as a device for training 
the pupil in selecting and applying to the demands of 
a particular job only what he has already acquired, 
while a valuable device, is not the type of project 
discussed here since it lacks the element of requiring 
the pupil to determine intelligently needs for additional 
knowledge required to carry out that particular proj- 
ect, and to secure such additional knowledge as a 
prerequisite to completing or carrying out the project 
in hand." ^ 

From the foregoing quotation it becomes evident 
that Allen lays great stress on the priority of a problem 
over the statement of principles. As he states later : 

" If, however, it is desired to use the project to 
impart additional knowledge then it is evident that 
the project must be so arranged that the pupil will 
acquire his additional knowledge just at the time when 
he needs it to carry out that particular project." ^ 

1 Allen, C. R., " The Project Method and the Combination of the 
Project Method with the Phase System of Grading and Promotion." 
Massachusetts Board of Education, Bulletin 75. 

2 Op. cit. 



84 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The definition proposed and outlined by Allen is 
very comprehensive, in that it includes review project 
as well as instruction project. 

(e) The Use of the Project in the Field of English 
Instruction 

The adaptation of the project idea to other fields 
is rapidly receiving consideration. In the teaching of 
English literature and composition, J. F. Hosic has 
made use of the term. The following gives in detail 
his characterization : 

" I understand by project a complete unit of ex- 
perience. The essential aspects or elements of an 
experience are, in the simplest form, a situation and 
the response to it. This, however, will not describe 
adequately what is meant by the type of experience 
called complete. Such a unit includes the following 
phases : situation, problem, purpose, plan, criticism 
of the plan, execution, judgment of results, apprecia- 
tion. This is, of course, not a chronological order 
strictly speaking, as a feeling of appreciation will 
spring up in anticipation of the outcome, while on the 
other hand, purpose persists and plan is modified to 
the very end. Negatively, the project is not to be 
confused with mere problem, with motivation, with 
incidental learning, with correlation, with self-activity, 
or with the idea of general method as illustrated by 
the Herbartian ' formal steps.' To understand what 
the project method is we have only to go out into life 
and study any case of purposeful living. Perhaps, 
then, the word purposeful should be added to the 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 85 

original definition of a project — a complete unit of 
purposeful experience. This will distinguish the proj- 
ect method from ordinary habitual reaction, as think- 
ing, planning, criticizing, etc., are essential. I may 
add that the results to flow from the project will include 
growth in initiative, in power to think, in judgment of 
values, and in appreciation, as well as in concentra- 
tion and power of organization, at least within the 
range of specific suggestions in which the experience 
functions. So far as these results are general that 
result will be secured by observing the laws which 
govern the conditions of transfer." ^ 

This characterization provides for reasoning as 
against the memory of information, for in the unit of 
learning he includes situation, purpose, plan, criti- 
cism of the plan, execution of the plan, judgment of 
results, and appreciation. In carrying out this unit new 
situations would arise which would demand reasoning. 
Since the unit of experience provides for execution, it 
contemplates carrying the act to completion. In an- 
other summary, the author indicates that the project 
is " an organization of school life in accordance with 
life in the home and community,'^ hence a natural 
setting for the problem is provided. In comparing 
the project with a purposeful activity in life he seems 
to favor the priority of the problem over the state- 
ment of principles, although this is not specifically 
stated. 

1 Hosic, J. F. Statement sent to writer in letter, March 20, 1918. 



86 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

(f) Use of the Project in Elementary School Instruction 

The adaptation and use of the project in the pri- 
mary and elementary grades is becoming an increasingly 
important subject of discussion. Effort is being made 
by educational administrators, supervisors, and teachers 
to develop a curriculum whereby provision will be made 
for the pupils to continue their normal activities in 
school. The project idea as defined and illustrated 
seems to meet this need. 

One of the most comprehensive and interesting books 
showing the use of the project in elementary grade 
work has been written by Miss Krackowizer.-^ The 
purpose of the book as stated by the author is : 

" To break down the artificial barrier between first 
grade and kindergarten; to do away with much of 
the formaHsm and mechanism of the early grades ; to 
have the child continue in as normal a way as possible 
those life activities in which he is engaged outside of 
school ; to do this in a manner which will best further 
his adjustment to new activities in which he takes 
part ; to make the child increasingly intelligent, and 
much more active in his response to his environ- 
ment." ^ 

" Any ' purposeful activity ^ determined upon and 
carried to a successful conclusion becomes a project." 

This definition provides for the act being carried to 
completion. In fact, the completed act is an essential 

* Krackowizer, Alice M., "Projects in the Primary Grades." J. B. 
Lippincott, Philadelphia, 1919. 
2 Op. cit., p, 7. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 87 

element of the definition. Although the natural set- 
ting is not clearly provided for in the definition, never- 
theless the illustrations and descriptions which the 
author gives leave no doubt in the mind of the reader 
that the natural setting is an essential factor in the 
definition. These citations are pertinent. 

" Projects of all kinds, involving play, social ex- 
perience, nature experience, constructive activities, are 
part of the child's daily life, long before he enters 
school ; they should continue as parts of his daily life 
under normal conditions while he is in school." ^ 

" The plea is merely for a unified life at school, 
where each activity shall take its legitimate place, with 
changing emphasis on the various elements, according 
to the greatest need at any given time. Social and 
nature experience, play, constructive activity, litera- 
ture, reading, writing, and the rest must form the 
ingredients of each daily, weekly, monthly program. 
It is the teacher's task so to select and adjust condi- 
tions as properly to balance the ingredients so they will 
mutually help one another. This means that condi- 
tions will confront the children in the most ^ true-to- 
fashion,' and will be met by them as a life to be lived, 
rather than as a task to be performed because arbitrarily 
imposed." ^ 

Not only does Miss Krackowizer make provision for 
the act but also for the problematic act : 

" All . . . projects include the problem type in so 
far as they are not merely unconscious responses. The 

1 Krackowizer, Alice M., "Projects in the Primary Grades," p. 9. 

2 Op. cit, pp. 8-10. 



88 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

process of carrying out projects . . . includes thoughts, 
suggestions; and activities rejected as well as those 
finally selected as pertinent." ^ 

The teacher who plans to utilize the project as a 
method of teaching and a method of curriculum 
organization will find this statement of Miss Kracko- 
wizer helpful. It will aid the teacher in understanding 
and interpreting the project idea and applying the 
principles to daily schoolroom practice, 

*^ if he will look for illustrations referring to ' purposeful 
activity ' of the children, and to the working back and 
forth in helping fashion of the various elements of the 
school curriculum. Such cross references occur in : 
The caring for pets, which involves play and labor; 
the dramatization of literary gems, the representative 
play in connection with social and nature experience ; 
the constructive activities carried on in response to 
social demands; the reading, writing, and number 
done as the result of living social lives." ^ 

V. Summary 

This chapter has shown that the types of teaching 
which have been analyzed and discussed in Chapters 
I and II are, without modification of meaning, inade- 
quate to take care of the situations designated as 
projects. 

The term ^' project " was first used by the United 

1 Krackowizer, Alice M., "Projects in the Primary Grades," p. 17. 

2 Op. cit, p. 11. 



DEFINITION OF THE PROJECT 89 

States Department of Agriculture as an outlined plan 
for carrying on a piece of cooperative work. The 
designation ^^ home project' ' was used in 1908 in con- 
nection with agriculture in the secondary schools by 
Stimson and others. 

The definition of the project which is proposed is 
the following : 

A project is a problematic act carried to completion in 
its natural setting. 

This definition provides for an act carried to com- 
pletion as over against the passive absorption of in- 
formatioU; and for the development of the problematic 
situation demanding reasoning rather than merely the 
memorizing of information. By emphasizing the prob- 
lematic aspect it implies the priority of the problem 
over the statement of the principles and it makes pro- 
vision for the natural setting of problems as over 
against an artificial setting. 

An analysis of the definitions of projects by teachers 
of general educational theory, agriculture, science, 
industrial education, and English in primary and ele- 
mentary grades, shows wide variations in meaning. 
Most of the definitions make provision for the problem- 
atic act and few for carrying the act to completion. 
Although the natural setting for the problems is 
frequently implied, it is seldom specially stated or 
discussed. 

The question that must be answered in determining 
whether the setting is artificial or natural is this : Is 



90 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

the problem, which is demanding solution, different, 
due to the fact that it is undertaken in school, from 
what it would be were it to arise in life outside the 
schbol? In other words is the problem presented for 
solution by schoolroom practice essentially different 
from that found in life outside the school? If the 
solution is carried on in the same way in school then 
the problem has a " natural setting " even though it is 
being solved in school. 

The provision for the natural setting of the teaching 
situation is the distinct contribution of the project method. 
Without the natural setting there is no project. 



CHAPTER IV 

PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 

I. The Need for Making a Distinction between 
Project and Problem 

A critical study of the literature on the project 
method, as applied particularly to the teaching of the 
arts and sciences, shows that no clear-out distinction 
has as yet been made between the project and the 
problem method of teaching. WoodhuU, for instance, 
in a recent article discussing the methods of science 
teaching makes none, and, indeed, it would be quite 
fair to interpret him as using the terms synonymously, 
for in comparing the project or problem with the topic 
it is clear that he used the terms interchangeably. 
Again in the same article he states : 

" The present need of the schools is for a large col- 
lection of sample projects, or problems which may be 
used in showing teachers in a given community how 
to devise and utilize projects adapted to different grade 
pupils in their own environment." ^ 

1 Woodhull, John F., "The Aims and Methods of Science Teaching." 
General Science Quarterly, Vol. 2, p. 250, November, 1917. 

91 



92 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

In continuing the discussion, Woodhull quotes the 
characterization of the project made by C. R. Mann, 
which, as stated before, may be considered to be a 
multi-problem. 

There is a tendency, too, on the part of some writers, 
to use an expression which will not make it necessary 
to separate clearly and distinctly the terms '^ project " 
and " problem/' The expression which is used is the 
" problem-project method of instruction." 

Hosic uses the term " problem-project " to describe 
certain teaching situations which for the present writer 
would constitute projects. Hosic would consider the 
term ^' project '^ adequate if it were not so closely 
identified with certain shop and laboratory practices. 
The term ^^ problem '^ he believes is inadequate because it 
suggests a purely intellectual process. The '' problem- 
project " appears to be more satisfactory because this 
compounded term emphasizes both thinking and doing, 
and points to an objective result. 

The writer is in sympathy with Hosiers effort to 
include in the concept ^^ project '^ the idea of a problem. 
It is rather unfortunate, however, that this was done 
by the use of the term " problem-project '' because of 
the usual confusion in the use of these two terms. 
Hosic does not confuse the meanings ; neither does he 
use them synonymously. The teaching situation which 
he describes as the problem-project is designated as the 
project by the writer. Hosiers use of the term " prob- 
lem'' is identical with the writer's, to be described later. 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 93 

In a recent article on the problem and project 
method; H. G. Lull makes no effort to present a clear- 
cut distinction between these two terms. He makes 
the point, however, that Kilpatrick " holds that 
problem instruction is a special case of project instruc- 
tion/' The following statement by Lull indicates that 
he recognizes some difference in meaning between the 
two concepts. 

" Alternative suggestions arise in the case of the prob- 
lem as to whether one means or another shall be chosen 
to relieve a difficulty or to reach a definite end. Or it 
may be that the choice of an end is in doubt. In 
either case, there are perplexing difficulties, and before 
a choice can be safely made, there must be further 
investigation. Finally, at least a tentative choice is 
made of a certain line of procedure or of a certain end 
to work for, and the work proceeds on the basis of this 
choice until it is shown to be leading the wrong way. 
Again, the problem is predominately a matter of ex- 
planation or interpretation while the project is in the 
main a matter of planning to do something and doing 
it." 1 

Since there seems to be no sharply drawn distinction 
between the project and the problem as interpreted by 
some of the leading advocates and writers on the 
project method, it will be necessary, for the sake of 
clarity, to set up definitions which may make it possible 
to distinguish these two terms. 

1 Lull, Herbert G., "Project-Problem Instruction," School and Home 
Education, Vol. 38, p. 79, 1918. 



94 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

II. Definitions of Problem and Project 

The definition of the problem as proposed by John 
Dewey is quite adequate : 

" Every conscious situation involving reflection pre- 
sents a distinction between certain given conditions 
and something to be done with them ; the possibility 
of a change. This contrast and connection of the 
given and the possible confers a certain problematic, 
uncertain aspect upon those situations that evoke 
thought. There is an element, which may be slight 
or which may be intense, of perplexity, of difficulty, 
of confusion. The need of clearing up confusion, of 
straightening out an ambiguity, of overcoming an 
obstacle, of covering the gap between things as they 
are and as they may be when transformed, is in germ, 
a problem." ^ 

The definition of the project which the writer pro- 
posed and discussed on pages 43-54 may be con- 
sidered again here in connection with its relation to 
the problem. The project as defined is a problematic 
act carried to completion in its natural setting. 

The term ^'problem " is largely '^intellectualistic in its 
connotation " and if it were used exclusively it would 
have a tendency ^' to overemphasize the intellect ual- 
istic aspect of school work." ^ The project, on the 
other hand, lays emphasis not only on the problematic 
situation but also on the act and on the possibility of 

1 Dewey, John, " Problem." Monroe's Cyclopedia of Education. 

2 Kilpatrick, W. H., " How Shall We View Method ? " (Unpublished 
article.) 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 95 

carrying it to completion. The project makes pro- 
vision for the natural setting of the teaching unit. 
Without the natural setting there is no project. The 
problem setting may be artificial, that is, it may not 
approximate a life situation. The project is a normal 
life situation, or the problem in its natural setting. 
The foregoing view is indicated by Kilpatrick in the 
following statement. 

"It is at once evident that every problem which is 
accepted for prosecution in the sense that its solution 
is willed ex vi termini is a project. In this sense every 
real problem is a project, but every project is not a 
problem ; the problem method accordingly becomes 
a special case — a most important one, to be sure — of 
the project." ^ 

This same view of the project and problem is shared 
by Miss Krackowizer : 

" Children's lives are full of activity. They are 
constantly carrying out projects and solving problems 
of their own. In the process of living they learn to 
think, because of the fact that in their activity they 
are most often carrying out a definite purpose ; that 
in order to do so they must weigh and judge among 
ideas and material details and select from among these 
the ones most pertinent to the fulfillment of their 
immediate end ; that in working out their definite 
purpose, they meet difficulties which need to be over- 
come before the desired end can be obtained. 

1 Kilpatrick, W. H., " How Shall We View Method ? " (Unpublished 
article.) 



96 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" Since this is the method of procedure of a normal 
child or of any normal human being when under no 
constraint, the school should adopt it. ' Purposeful 
activity ' on the part of the children then becomes the 
aim of the school. The teacher's part is to guide 
towards such ^ purposeful activities ' as will prove of 
greatest benefit to the children, choosing among those 
directly available for first-hand experience." ^ 

The following definition of the project is proposed 
by Miss Krackowizer : " Any ^ purposeful activity ' 
determined upon and carried to a successful conclusion 
becomes a project/' She defines the problem as the 
situation which demands the " exercise of choice." 

The writer uses the expression ^^ natural setting for 
the problem " in the same sense that Kilpatrick uses 
" real problem." In the writer's definition of project 
the term is made to include the problem stated as the 
problematic act. It is. quite clear, then, that the 
project must include a problem. 

The apparent difficulty in defining the fields of the 
project and problem is just what might be expected 
when the less inclusive term, " problem," covers a 
large part of the field taken by the more inclusive 
term, " project." The problem does not make any 
provision for the natural setting of the teaching situa- 
tion, while the project does. To make a sharper dis- 
tinction, we may state that the project differs from the 

1 Krackowizer, Alice M., "Projects in the Primary Grades," pp. 15- 
16. Lippincott, Philadelphia. 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 97 

problem, in that it involves action in its natural setting. 
The project carries with it the implication of doing, the 
problem suggests primarily an intellectual process. 

The distinction between problems and projects is 
well stated by Miss Krackowizer : 

" The progress of carrying out projects and problems 
includes thoughts, suggestions and activities rejected 
as well as those finally selected as pertinent. If no 
steps are taken toward the attainment of a definite 
purpose, the mental problem may remain in the child^s 
mind, but there is no solution of it and there is no 
project involved/' ^ 

III. Types of Problems and Projects 

(a) The Manual Problem and the Manual 
Project 

It should be remembered, however, that the problem 
is not necessarily confined to the intellectual process. 
It is quite possible to have problems involving manipu- 
lative skill, even physical activity, and yet these may 
not be considered projects. The following example 
will illustrate. In introducing the subject of baking 
powder in a chemistry class, the teacher had the 
students make tests to determine the amount of carbon 
dioxide given off by equal amounts of the different 
brands of baking powder. The whole lesson proved 

1 Krackowizer, Alice M., "Projects in the Primary Grades," pp. 16- 
17. Lippincott, Philadelphia. 



9S THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

interesting and the results were probably better than 
those of the average laboratory experiment. The 
students carried out their problems and later purchased 
different brands to repeat the experiment. But while 
this exercise may have been effective, it was a problem 
(we could well term it a manual problem) and not a 
project, since the setting was artificial. 

One of the boys, however, suggested that it might be 
interesting to determine which brands were economical. 
Several of the boys and girls then tested the baking 
powder used at home and compared results with those 
obtained in the experiment. They then reported to 
their mothers the efficiency of the different powders 
and this resulted, in some cases, in a change by the 
mother in her purchase. This latter exercise is a 
project, for it arose in the natural setting, i.e.^ the 
desire to help or give advice to the mother, and the 
act was carried to completion in its natural setting. 
This may be termed a manual project. 

The manual projects are common in the fields of 
general science, agriculture, home economics, and 
manual training. 

(b) The Intellectual Problem and the Intellectual Project 

Again, it is not necessary that there be physical 
activity in the project, that is manual activity. While 
it is true that physical activity is usually considered 
a part of the project, yet mental acts may constitute 
" activity." In a course in the '' History of Western 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 99 

Europe " the teacher suggested that the events of the 
Great War should be followed. One student noted in 
his reading the frequent references to the proposed 
reestablishment of Poland as an independent nation. 
He asked the teacher, " Why should this particular 
country be set up ? '^ The teacher repHed that this 
would be a good problem for him to solve. As a result 
he read widely, looked up references, and was able 
to give an accurate account of the three divisions 
of Poland. 

This problem arose in its natural setting — the situ- 
ation was not essentially different because it was 
solved in school; it was a problematic act carried to 
completion in its natural setting. This may be termed 
an intellectual project. 

(c) Illustrations 

Four types of projects and problems have been 
mentioned, the manual problem, the intellectual prob- 
lem, the manual project, and the intellectual project. 
An illustration of each of these types will be made from 
the same field of subject matter in order to show clearly 
their differences. 

The subject matter may be centered around the 
study of the electric bell. If the topic were begun by 
making an assignment in the text, the student being 
required to master the lesson as assigned without regard 
to the natural setting for the problem, it would be an 
intellectual problem. If he were to perform the experi- 



100 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

ments as outlined and directed in the physics manual, 
even doing some construction work, this exercise would 
be classed as a manual problem. These are " prob- 
lems " because dijficulties arise and are solved. They 
are not " projects " because the " natural setting " is 
lacking. 

The student might become interested in electric 
bells, burglar alarms, and the like, and take up the 
subject seriously, reading widely in order to familiarize 
himself with the details of the bell. He might do this 
in the same way and for the same purpose as one would 
who should consider such a problem outside the school. 
The teacher might set the stage for such purposeful 
activities. This method of approach illustrates the 
intellectual project. If this exercise were carried to the 
point where a bell system or a burglar alarm system 
was installed, perhaps in the home, the total activity 
would represent the manual project. These are proj- 
ects because difficulties arise and are solved in a 
natural setting ; that is, the situation is not essentially 
different from a " life situation.'' 

The two types of projects are recognized by Miss 
Krackowizer in the following quotation : 

" There are various types of projects. One of these 
types involves mental processes alone, without manipu- 
lation of material and without the necessity of outward 
expression ; this is the problem type. It goes without 
saying that, while this type may exist by itself, it is 
not likely to do so in the child's world. On the other 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 101 

hand, all other types of projects include the problem 
type in so far as they are not merely unconscious 
responses. '^ ^ 

It must be borne in mind that the manual problem 
and the intellectual project are the two concepts which 
may cause confusion in making the distinction between 
projects and problems. The first step is to determine 
whether the natural setting for the problem exists. 
If so, the teaching situation is a project. 

What is frequently done in school is to take problems 
away from their setting in projects, with the resulting 
tendency to teach them in isolated groups with little 
thought of their function. To avoid this isolation of 
elements, a larger unit of work, the project, is under- 
taken on a functional basis and carried over into 
activity. 

It is interesting to note that both problems and 
projects vary widely in the degrees of complexity. The 
boy who oils a bearing or the boy who determines the 
efficiency of the dairy herd is, in each case, carrying 
out a project, but the complexity of the latter is far 
greater than that of the former. Again the problems 
vary in complexity. For instance, the finding of the 
product of 3 X 6 is less complex than the determination 
of the relative superiority of the harbors of New York 
and San Francisco. 

1 Krackowizer, Alice M., "Projects in the Primary Grades," p. 16. 



102 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

IV. Classification of Problems and Projects 
Based upon Degree of Complexity 

Since there is such a wide variation in the complexity 
of the problems and the projects and since there are 
so many situations which these concepts cover, the 
following subdivisions indicating this degree of com- 
plexity are suggested : 

Problems may be classified as (a) Simple problems 
and (b) Multi-problems. Projects may be classified as 
(c) Simple, and (d) Complex. 

(l) Simple Problems and Illustrations 

The simple problem has its place in school. There 
are many intellectual difficulties that are not complex 
and yet need to be solved. The teacher may ask such 
questions as, " Where is Louisiana ? What city is its 
capital? Its resources? Where is Alabama? Its 
capital? " etc. The teacher may ask a number of 
simple questions concerning the states in the Southern 
group, and since they are in a sense difficulties proposed 
for solution, they may be considered as simple problems. 

But, instead of proposing for solution a number of 
these simpler questions, the teacher may propose one 
large problem, which we call the multi-problem, and 
which may embrace all these simple problems. Instead 
of asking many detailed questions about the New 
England States and the Southern States a " multi- 
problem " might be suggested such as the following : 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 103 

Compare the two groups of states in respect to size, 
location, surface, population, industries^ harbors, agri- 
cultural activities, and labor. Or again, — Is the 
Southern group sufficiently large to make a strong 
nation ? is the New England group ? 

(2) Multi-problems and Illustrations 

There are many simple problems that could be pro- 
posed for solution in the suggested study of the two 
groups of states. But in the multi-problem attack, 
some one complex problem which will involve most of 
the materials and facts covered by the simple problem 
is selected. 

For instance, a superintendent proposed in the 
geography classes which were studying New England 
this question : ^^ Might New England have developed 
into a powerful, independent nation? " Several prob- 
lems arose and all the facts usually taken up by the 
topical method were utilized. The first minor problem 
was this : "Is New England large enough? '' A pupil 
turned to the appendix of the geography, found the 
area of the United States, of his native state, and of 
New England, and decided in the negative, — New 
England was too small. 

" But how does it compare in size with some great 
European nations?'^ was the question proposed by 
the teacher. 

The children named several important European 
countries, and finally selected for study the British 
Isles and particularly England. Comparisons of area 
were made. 



104 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The teacher then put the problem : "As far as area 
is concerned, might New England have been a nation ? 
Is New England large enough to become a nation? " 
The class then reversed itself and decided for the 
afl&rmative. 

Then the question was put : " Greenland is twelve 
times the size of New England. Is it a great nation? '^ 
The pupils decided that size was not all-important and 
that they must know whether or not the people could 
raise what they needed to eat, and to know this they 
must get facts about soil, seasons, surface, and climate. 

A study of soils was made and a study of the other 
items of seasons, surface, and climate followed. Before 
the books were opened, the children were always asked 
to hazard opinions about the probable nature of soils, 
seasons, etc. (This took much time because of com- 
parisons made with their native state.) They decided 
that New England could not feed itself, and also, after 
protracted study, that New England could not clothe 
itself. It, therefore, could not become a great nation — 
so the pupils reasoned. 

"But can England feed and clothe itself?" The 
study revealed that it could not. " But since she is 
a great nation, how is this overcome ? " By trade. 

" What could New England trade (from your knowl- 
edge of New England already learned) ? " Products of 
fisheries, mines, forests, etc. 

" Does New England have more fish than it needs 
for its own use? " A study of fisheries followed and 
the question was answered affirmatively. So, also, was 
carried on a careful study of mining, lumber-manufac- 
turing, etc. In each case the children formed their 
judgment and verified their conclusions.^ 

* Charters, W. W., " Systematic Topics, Multi-problems and Proj- 
ects." Proceedings Illinois State Teachers Association, 1917. 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 105 

A Multi-problem in Art 

Another multi-problem, one in the field of art, may- 
be cited. It was outlined and carried out in the 
seventh and eighth grades in Grand Rapids under the 
supervision of Miss Charlotte Calkins. The topic of 
the two years' work was called " The House Beautiful/' 

The problem took up all phases of making the house 
beautiful, — the selection of the lot, making plans of 
the house, involving the principles of design, and finally 
the study and selection of furnishings. 

In the two years during which this study was carried 
on the pupils were brought in contact with most of the 
problems that arise in making the house beautiful. 

It may be said, parenthetically, that for most of the 
pupils this was a school problem, but to some of the 
pupils it became a project. One such project was 
called to the attention of the writer. A girl's mother 
was planning to redecorate and refurnish the house. 
The girl, aided by the supervisor, took charge of the 
undertaking, and, in carrying the task to completion, 
developed principles as she needed them. This is, of 
course, splendid teaching, for it applies principles of 
art in a very concrete, interesting, and almost spec- 
tacular manner. The work as carried on by Miss 
Calkins may be classed as a multi-problem. Instead 
of asking the pupils to solve many detailed and simple 
problems of art, the large multi-problem, ^' The House 
Beautiful," was suggested. There were many simple 



106 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

problems and projects involved in this one large multi- 
problem. It is classed as a problem because it was 
not in most cases carried to completion in its natural 
setting. 

A Multi-problem in Arithmetic 

Another interesting multi-problem in the field of 
arithmetic is reported by Clark as an illustration of 
the project or problem-project. The problem was the 
mathematics and business practice involved in buying a 
lot and building a house. Such subjects as legal de- 
scriptions of real estate, taxes, building costs of differ- 
ent materials, borrowing money, mortgages, insurance, 
were studied in connection with the many mathematical 
problems. This is an interesting method of approach 
but should not be called a project or a problem-project 
because the setting is not natural, there is an artifi- 
ciality about it. This is a valuable exercise and should 
be given wide publicity. For the sake of clearness, 
however, it should not go under the name of project.^ 

A Multi-problem in Geography 

A significant multi-problem in geography was car- 
ried on by Miss Williams in an eighth grade at the 
Kansas State Normal School. The problem was '^ To 
show why the trade of New York is greater than that 
of San Francisco." The problem was investigated by 

1 Clark, J. R., "The Problem-Project in Arithmetic," Chicago Schools 
Journal, Vol. 1, pp. 15, 16, 1918. 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 107 

all the pupils^ each preparing an outHne and suggesting 
methods of procedure. The things needed in solving 
the problems were suggested : 

" 1. The value of trade in money and quantity of 
trade in tons. 

" 2. Description of the two harbors. 

" 3. Position of the two cities with reference to our 
country^ to foreign countries. 

" 4. Articles of trade." 

The various points were discussed in class, references 
were reviewed, and finally a series of conclusions was 
prepared and adopted by the class. 

This is reported as a project-problem, but owing to 
the fact that there was no provision for the natural 
setting, it is more accurately classed as a multi- 
problem.^ 

(b) Simple and Complex Projects 

Not only are there simple problems and complex 
problems, but in like manner there are simple and 
complex projects. The girl who accepts the problem 
of peeling potatoes economically at home may be said 
to be carrying out a simple project, but her task is 
much less complex than that of the girl who under- 
takes as her project the entire preparation of the 
meals for the family for a period of a month with par- 

1 Williams, Jennie, " Project Problem Instruction in the Eighth Grade 
Geography," Teaching, No. 45, pp. 11-15. A Journal published by- 
Kansas State Normal School, Emporia, Kansas. 



108 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

ticular attention to the reduction of cost. The latter 
is a complex project. 

Obviously, it will be very difficult to draw an exact 
line of demarcation between the simple and complex 
problems and projects, but this guiding principle may 
be posited. When the process has sufficient complex- 
ity to be broken up into a number of problems or simple 
projects, it may be classed as complex. 

The classification of projects into simple and com- 
plex is recognized by C. R. Allen : 

" ' Projects ' may include major and minor projects, 
the latter being a subdivision of the former. For 
example, a boy might undertake to raise an acre of 
corn as his major project. A minor project connected 
therewith would be the preparation of the soil or the 
test of the seed." ^ 

In order that the proposed classification will be 
better understood, a number of simple and complex 
projects will be cited. 

(l) Simple Projects and Illustrations 

Such tasks as sharpening tools, cutting to a line, 
planing a board, and fitting a joint in the manual 
training class when carried on in a natural setting may 
be considered as simple projects. The baking of a loaf 
of bread, setting the table, serving the meal, and going 

1 Allen, C. R., "The Project Method and the Combination of the 
Project Method with the Phase Method." Massachusetts Board of 
Education, Bulletin 75, p. 50. 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 109 

to the meat market to procure a certain cut of meat 
may be called simple projects in home economics. 
Making an analysis of soil, testing varieties of seed 
corn, spraying fruit trees with a given mixture, keep- 
ing a milk record for a week, selecting and preparing 
seed potatoes, developing plans to remove surface 
water around farm buildings, treating seeds with 
formalin, introducing a plan for proper feed rations 
for domestic animals, if carried on in the natural 
setting, are representative for agriculture. In art, 
framing a picture according to principles of design, 
making curtains, selecting artistic but inexpensive wall 
paper, illustrate the simple project. 

In composition, writing an invitation, a report of a 
recent athletic game for the school paper, or a letter 
illustrate the simple project in composition. 

In arithmetic, solving simple problems which arise 
in connection with some of the home activities, such 
as checking over the weekly grocery bill, illustrate the 
simple project. 

(2) Complex Projects and Illustrations 

A complex project differs from the simple project 
only in the degree of complexity. As stated previously 
it is difficult to draw a sharp line between the simple 
project and the complex. To illustrate the point a 
little more fully, projects might be arranged in the 
order of complexity beginning with the least complex 
and ending with the most complex suited to school 



110 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

conditions. The complex projects would consist of the 
projects in the upper half of this group. At the point 
in the scale where the projects were sufficiently com- 
plex to be broken up into smaller problems and proj- 
ects, that point would, in general terms, mark the 
beginning of complex projects. 

Complex Projects in Agriculture 

A number of projects outlined by Stimson in his 
bulletin on " The Massachusetts Home Project Plan 
of Vocational Agricultural Education '' illustrate the 
complex project. The project of constructing a con- 
crete walk might involve a study of the nature of 
cement ; its action on sand, gravel, and broken stone ; 
its weather-resisting qualities ; the seasons in which 
it might be used ; the cost as compared with plank, 
brick, flagging, and asphalt ; the mathematical deter- 
mination of proportions of sand, cement, and stone to 
be used ; the geometrical determination of the sections 
into which it should be divided, and whether it should 
be crowned or flat ; the geographical sources of the 
raw material and the commercial conditions for pur- 
chasing the cement. 

" The home project, or part-time plan of instruction, 
moreover fits in nicely in its relation to the usual farm 
activities of the boy. The boy may help with the 
milking throughout his course, where the object is to 
get the cows milked as quickly as possible and where 
no records are kept. During certain months of at 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 111 

least one year the school should require whatever time 
may be necessary for keeping an accurate record in 
pounds and ounces of the yield of a part of the herd. 
This may be limited to the weighing of milk from a 
single cow and giving credit for what she produces." ^ 

The complex project in agriculture is well illustrated 
by French under the name '^ long time projects." ^ 
Such projects as raising an acre or more of corn, taking 
charge of an entire vegetable garden, or apple orchard, 
or the poultry for a season, give the scope of complex 
projects suggested by French. 

The student in a class in Modern History who be- 
came interested in the map of Europe and decided he 
would account for the present map undertook a com- 
plex project. 

A Complex Project Centering around the Parcel Post 

A very complex project centering around the parcel 
post; by C. W. Stone, will be summarized. It has been 
thoroughly developed and cuts across many subjects in 
the curriculum. It will serve as a good example of the 
project worked out fully. 

Since the children plan at the holiday season to send 
packages to distant friends and relatives they naturally 

1 Stimson, R. W., "The Massachusetts Home Project Plan of Vo- 
cational Agricultural Education." U. S. Bureau of Education, Bulle- 
tin 579, pp. 13-15, 1914. 

2 French, W. H., " Home Project in Agriculture for Michigan High 
Schools and School Credits," Michigan Agricultural College, Bulletin 
No. 17, 1916. 



112 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

consider the various ways by which they may be sent. 
This gives a natural motive for the study of the parcel 
post a few weeks before the holidays. This project 
was undertaken by the fourth grade class in the Iowa 
Teachers College Training School. " The main pur- 
pose was to bring the subject before the children in 
such a way as to prepare them to use the parcel post 
service to the best advantage. Accordingly, it was 
worked out not only through general discussions in 
which the entire grade took part, but also in their 
class work in handwork, geography, arithmetic, and 
language. '^ 

The available experience which the children had for 
this project was ability to read and write ; a knowledge 
of simple mathematics, including measurements, some 
knowledge of places in relation to their own locality ; 
ability to do elementary manual work ; they had 
received packages by parcel post and had seen the 
parcel postman delivering packages. 

" The main aims which the teacher had in mind 
were (l) to teach the children how to wrap and address 
correctly packages to be sent by parcel post, (2) to 
teach them what might or might not be sent by parcel 
post, (3) to teach them the advantages of parcel post 
service, (4) to give them practical problems in arith- 
metic, (5) to make a beginning of map reading by 
locating the places to which packages were to be sent, 
(6) to give them a larger conception of civic life, (7) to 
train them in obedience to laws and regulations, and 
(8) to teach them to help other people. 

The rules and regulations of sending packages by 
parcel post were worked out by the pupils and teacher, 
the larger part was suggested by the pupils. 

The technique and practice of wrapping packages 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 113 

was carried out in the handwork lesson. Here ques- 
tions as to the cord and paper to be used and the 
methods of wrapping different types of articles were 
developed. Each child selected an article and wrapped 
it, developing principles as needed. The addressing 
of the packages with its problems was done in the 
language class and the study of the parcel post zones 
was carried on in the geography class. In the arith- 
metic class the children were taught to weigh and 
compute the cost of sending their packages to different 
zones. After computing the cost, the packages were 
taken to the postmaster, each member in turn acting 
as postmaster, to purchase stamps. The postmaster 
then weighed the package, looked up the zone, com- 
puted the cost of sending the package, returning the 
change to the pupil. This work furnished material 
for practical problems in arithmetic. 

Some of the children actually sent packages which 
they had wrapped in class, thereby testing the results 
of this exercise. 

The package which furnished the greatest interest 
was the one prepared for an orphans' home. The 
children brought toys from home and made others in 
the manual training class for the gift. The prepara- 
tion of this package, the wrapping, packing, and ad- 
dressing constituted one class exercise. A letter written 
by one of the members of the class was included, re- 
questing one of the children receiving the package to 
answer. Since this letter was chosen as the best by a 
committee it furnished competition, a motive, for the 
writing of the letter. 

" This study of the parcel post has given the chil- 
dren a practical knowledge which will enable them to 
render assistance at home whenever the need of sending 



114 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

a package by parcel post may arise. It has been a 
socializing influence. It has made them more observ- 
ant of civic relations and has opened their eyes to the 
possibility of their being able even as children to bring 
pleasure to others. The whole series of lessons furnishes 
a good example of the kind of school work which is a 
part of actual everyday living. '^ ^ 

A Complex Project in Physics 

In a high school physics course, the writer taught the 
principles and uses of the electric bell by the project 
method. Each year one or more of the school buildings 
had to have the bell system completely overhauled, 
which meant to install new bells, new wires, repair some 
of the bells, find short circuits, and, in many cases, make 
parts for bells or construct complete new ones. This 
project was discussed by the members of the class and 
leaders were appointed for each phase of the work. 
The principles of the electric bell were developed as 
needed in this task. Usually this experiment resulted 
in bell systems being placed in the homes. 

It will be seen that the complex projects proposed 
have been of sufficient complexity to allow them to be 
broken up into problems and simple projects. 

V. Summary 

It may be restated that the project is a problematic 
act carried to completion in its natural setting. It 

» Stone, C. W., " Parcel Post Project." 



PROBLEMS AND PROJECTS 115 

differs essentially from the problem in that it provides 
for the natural setting of the teaching unit and lays 
emphasis on the manual act. 

Problems may be classified as (l) intellectual and 
(2) manual. 

Projects may also be classified as (l) intellectual and 
(2) manual. 

On the basis of complexity, problems may be classi- 
fied as (l) simple and (2) multi-problems ; projects 
may be classified as (l) simple and (2) complex. 

The multi-problem gives superior training in develop- 
ing the technique of reasoning and " tends to make 
facts interesting and significant.'' The project, par- 
ticularly the complex project, in addition to develop- 
ing the technique of reasoning, provides the natural 
setting for problems and carries facts into action. 

Making provision for the natural setting sometimes 
may be uneconomical. If so, the problem method is 
advisable. 



CHAPTER V 

IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 
OF TEACHING 

I. The Project and Motivation 

The definition of the project includes the natural 
setting of the problem. This means that the problem 
has more significance for the learner. The natural 
setting of the project makes provision for a strong 
motive. The testing of seed corn for the father's or 
for the boy's own corn crop is more interesting than 
testing seed corn as a formal laboratory exercise. Test- 
ing the baking powder for the mother is connected with 
more interests than carrying on this test as a labora- 
tory experiment. The class in school hygiene which 
makes a sanitary survey of the town with a view to 
improving health conditions works on a project which 
is connected with more interests than the study of 
the principles of hygiene in a school text. The boy 
who went to Robinson's " History of Western Europe " 
to find the reasons why serious consideration is being 
given to the creation of Poland, probably would have 
read the history of the three partitions of Poland with 

116 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 117 

far greater interest had this problem been used to 
vitahze the usual logical method in history. 
A statement by Charters illustrates this point : 

" The natural setting provides a strong motive, — 
canning fruit for the family is more interesting, we will 
say, than cooking a little fruit in a small laboratory 
utensil. Treating the mold on fruit ^ I have canned for 
winter use' is more stimulating than studying molds 
as ends in themselves. Studjdng sterilization to use 
immediately in putting up fruit for friends has much 
more appeal than merely studying sterilization as a 
class exercise. Tying the process to outcomes and 
beginnings of a varied and intensely fundamental sort 
tends to produce a great spontaneous interest. All 
projects are not interesting to any one student, but if a 
project is selected so as to be of interest, the degree of 
the interest is likely to be very high because of the 
setting in the experience of the student. It is claimed 
that when the project is interesting, it is very 
interesting.'' ^ 

The project is able to create interest of a deep-seated 
sort because the interest comes from associative con- 
nections from many sources. The project offers many 
more reservoirs from which interest may be drawn. If 
a boy wishes to study or experiment with the method 
of testing seed corn merely to pass an examination or 
to make a grade in a certain course, the interest in the 
test or experiment flows in, or is irrigated from, the 

1 Charters, W. W., " The Project in Home Economics." Journal of 
Home Economics, Vol. 10, p. 117, March, 1918. 



118 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

grade or examination reservoir. But if, in addition, 
he is making the test in order to help his father to buy 
the seed corn economically, if he is planning to grow 
ten acres of corn from which he will receive a profit, 
if his own schooling or a trip for his mother depends 
upon the success of his project, then there are just so 
many more reservoirs of interest which are tapped by 
the project. 

If the testing of the seed corn is tied up with many 
more numerous interests than that of merely making a 
passing grade, then it means a greater amount of in- 
terest. The potentiality of interest in projects is great 
because of their wide and varied connections. 

Some teachers in agriculture find that the work done 
on the plots of ground owned by the school is not 
capable of arousing the genuine interest of pupils ; 
this is due probably to the artificial setting. When 
the work is taken up as projects at home and on their 
own farms great interest is aroused because of the 
natural setting for the problem. This means that the 
work on the home farm is tied up with more interests 
for the boy. The statement from MacHoke bears out 
this point. 

^^ We find home work giving better results than work 
of a similar nature on plants owned by the school. 
Each boy in a daily course is required to keep records 
of cows on the farm. Farmers are urged to leave 
samples of milk or products of milk. These are tested 
by the high school, and reports are made to the farmers 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 119 

and to the federal dairy department. We are testing 
sixty dairy cows at this time. More farmers will come 
in as soon as they have an opportunity to arrange it. 
We do a great deal of practical work on the farms near, 
such as pruning, sprajdng, making butter, oiling harness, 
judging stock, repairing machinery, growing crops. We 
are able to arouse deep interest among the pupils only 
by practical work in bringing subjects home to them, 
so that they can see the value of taking the course. 
The course is growing in popularity, and we anticipate 
large numbers next year,^' ^ 

The psychology of the project seems very simple. 
Every one works with the greatest effort at the problem 
in which he is most interested. The project provides 
for a natural setting which means that it is associated 
with many interests of the learner. It follows that the 
projects which are accepted for solution will be highly 
motivated — they will be worked at with a maximum 
effort because they hold great significance for the 
learner. A need for the solution is felt. This idea is 
implied by Stimson in the following comment on the 
interest developed by the project method. 

" The methods by which the boy becomes on a 
small scale a farmer or business man for himself gives 
the project which he is carrying on and the school 
work in which he participates a reality not otherwise 
attainable. It heightens measurably his interest in 
the work and in the related study of the school, and 

1 " Agricultural Teaching." Bulletin No. 601, U. S. Bureau of Edu- 
cation, p. 60, 1914. 



120 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

must fix better than by any other device the training 
which he is receiving." ^ 

Before concluding the topic of the project and mo- 
tivation it should be pointed out that projects are 
not always intrinsically interesting, in spite of the 
claims made by the advocates of the project method. 
As Charters indicates : 

" Projects may be interesting or uninteresting. 
There is no divine alchemy in the project. The proj- 
ect may be interesting to one class and not to another. 
It may be interesting to some children in the class and 
not to all. It can, of course, be shown that the pos- 
sibilities of interest are much greater than in the facts 
learned in topical organization or even in multi-prob- 
lems." 2 

II. The Project and Thinking 

It is unnecessary to take up at any length the impor- 
tance of thinking. It is more pertinent to present 
methods by which effective thinking may be attained, 
and in this discussion to show the relation of the proj- 
ect to thinking. 

A brief statement of the conditions which determine 
and promote thinking is accordingly presented herewith. 

Thinking occurs in a doubtful or perplexing situa- 
tion ; it is the establishment of connections between 
means and ends. '^ Since the situation in which think- 

' Stimson, R. W., " The Massachusetts Home Project Plan of Vo- 
cational Agricultural Education," p. 15, Bulletin No. 579, U. S. Bureau 
of Education, 1914. 

2 Charters, W. W., '* Systematic Topics, Multi-problems, and Projects." 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 121 

ing occurs is a doubtful one, thinking is a process of 
inquiring, of looking into things, of investigation." ^ 
Mind is active, not passive, and its methods of pro- 
cedure are experimental. 

The value of the project in directing thinking is 
shown in the following statements. 

The student may propose and accept the project of 
installing an electric signal service in the home. In 
planning the installation he faces this problem of 
determining the amounts of material, the cost and 
initial steps of installation. After he has completed 
the project he may find that certain bells will not ring, 
which will cause him to review the whole situation. 
His problem for the time being will be to find the 
immediate difficulty and he will go to the individual 
bell that does not respond to find the trouble. He 
may resort to his source material and read about the 
essential parts of the bell ; and with this information 
he may find that the make-and-break connection was 
not properly adjusted. Again he may discover that 
certain windows when raised will not give the alarm, 
and this causes him to shift his attack to this problem. 
He may trace out short circuits, he may find batteries 
poorly connected, or the battery solution not properly 
prepared. A certain button when pressed may cause 
a bell to ring continuously, and many other details 
may arise which will cause the boy to question himself, 
to examine his method, to abstract free ideas, to test 
1 Dewey, John, " Democracy and Education," p. 173. 



122 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

his application of principles, and to make readjust- 
ments to suit these given conditions. 

Each new problem or experience in the project leads 
the boy to shift his methods to meet and solve the 
difficulties. The projects, to be most educative, will 
develop situations bound to demand more thinking. 
To be thoroughly educative, the project must lead the 
individual to full activity, characteristic of a true 
project. 

The project gives the ideal organization of subject 
matter to arouse an aim and to direct thinking. The 
thinking of most worth to the individual is that which 
is directed by his own aims and not an aim held by 
someone else or one forced upon him. If the pupil 
has a specific aim he appreciates the difficulty he has 
to solve, and there is little doubt that he will be able 
to select his material intelligently to aid in the solution. 
Unless his thinking accomplishes results, it is doubtful 
whether it is of much value. 

Teachers frequently have the notion that, if students 
are assigned difficult problems which they attempt to 
solve but fail, they are being given valuable training. 
There are, of course, few accurately derived data from 
which to gain light on this contention, but the alleged 
value is doubtful, particularly if we count the dis- 
couragement of the pupil which naturally follows an 
unaccomplished task. The sensitiveness of the pupil 
must be guarded, and teachers must not allow him to 
lose his self-confidence. 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PRO.IECT METHOD 123 

Organization of the schools and the curricula should 
provide opportunity for developing life situations, 
which will involve effectual thought. It may be a 
long time before our schools are so organized as to take 
care of the projects which typify life situations, but 
there is no excuse for not applying projects as far as 
possible without completely disorganizing our present 
system. Information, whether gained in school or out- 
side of school, will be vitalized by close association 
with its use or function. The project offers a conven- 
ient unit to carry forward information simultaneously 
with its function. As Dewey says : 

" Every recitation in every subject gives an oppor- 
tunity for establishing cross connections between the 
subject matter of the lesson and the wider and more 
direct experiences of everyday life. 

" Processes of instruction are unified in the degree 
in which they center in the production of good habits 
of thinking. While we may speak, without error, of 
the method of thought, the important thing is that 
thinking is the method of an educative experience. 
The essentials of method are therefore identical with 
the essentials of reflection. They are first that the 
pupil have a genuine situation of experience — that 
there be a continuous activity in which he is interested 
for its own sake ; secondly, that a genuine problem 
develop within this situation as a stimulus to thought ; 
third, that he possess the information and make the 
observations needed to deal with it ; fourth, that sug- 
gested solutions occur to him which he shall be respon- 
sible for developing in an orderly way ; fifth, that he 



124 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

have opportunity and occasion to test his ideas by 
appHcation, to make their meaning clear and to dis- 
cover for himself their validity." ^ 

The project as defined makes provision for the 
necessary requisites for thinking as outlined by Dewey. 

The following project is outlined to show how the 
project takes into account these items : 

The boy accepts the project of determining the value 
of each cow in his father's herd of fifteen, with the 
additional idea of improving the production by proper 
rations. Possibly the father has agreed to credit him 
with half of his savings, with the understanding that 
this money is to aid in the boy's college education. 
This type of project may be exaggerated. Possibly 
few projects can or will be tied up with so many points 
of interest, yet this one is not at all impossible, in fact, 
it has actually been used. It has the merit of giving 
the pupil a genuine situation. There is continuous 
activity in carrying the project forward when the pupil 
is interested. Second, there will be many genuine 
problems developing within this project, which will be 
a stimulus to thought. The boy will keep a daily rec- 
ord of the rations, the record of the products of each 
cow, and possibly will develop the determination to get 
rid of the non-paying cows and to invest in new and 
better stock. Situations arise daily which demand 
that the boy take an inventory of the conditions and 
make a hypothesis. Third, he must possess informa- 
[ * Dewey, John, "Democracy and Education," pp. 191-192. 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 125 

tion and take observations in order to make a success 
of his project. If he doubts his recommendations, he 
will go to the sources of information to help him solve 
the difficulties. It may be that a few days' change of 
rations may seem rather expensive and not worth 
while, even though the production shows a slight gain. 
The authorities he consults will probably point out that 
a radical or material improvement cannot be expected 
immediately. Fourth, suggested solutions of the 
method of improvement will come to him daily. He 
will be compelled to develop these hypotheses in an 
orderly way in order to check results. Fifth, this 
project affords ample opportunity and occasion to apply 
his ideas. He will have occasion to test expert opinion 
on rations, on breeds of stock, and he will be able to 
discover for himself the validity of these recommenda- 
tions. 

In order to carry his project to completion with 
distinct success, it is not only possible, but necessary, 
that attention be given to the items which Dewey 
points out as essential to real thinking. 

The project directs thinking; it develops the atti- 
tudes of scientific research that should be fostered in 
our secondary schools. Boys and girls in the secondary 
schools have plenty of projects and are eager to receive 
the teacher's help in solving them. Indeed projects 
furnish the natural means for developing a scientific 
attitude. The pupil secures larger benefit if he origi- 
nates the project, but by no means should we classify 



126 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

projects as wortliless if the teacher suggests them. 
The value then depends on whether the pupil accepts 
them as his own, and this is where skill in teaching will 
be of considerable service. 

The steps in the logical method of arriving at a 
solution of a problem are : (l) defining the problem ; 
(2) collection of data ; (3) hypothesis ; (4) verification. 

The project when carried to completion uses the 
identical steps of logical thinking. If the foregoing 
items were given as constituting the method the proj- 
ect employs in arriving at solutions, the statement 
would be wholly correct. The project furnishes the 
opportunity for placing pupils in situations in which 
it is absolutely necessary that they think in order to 
solve the difficulty. 

This point is well emphasized by J. C. Moore in the 
following paragraphs : 

" Pasteur, working on his asymmetric crystals of 
tartaric acid, came near being caught in the obscurity 
of university research, but Dumas called him to a real 
project, the elimination of the silkworm disease that 
was causing a loss of 20,000,000 kilograms of cocoons 
to France each year. He was not a technically trained 
biologist, but having felt the need, the problem became 
vital. He threw all his energies into the work, to the 
study he brought the resources from many fields, ex- 
perimenting, testing, proving, until the result was 
obtained. 

" Then followed that wonderful list of projects, grow- 
ing out of the needs of his day. The story of every 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 127 

great invention is the story of a project, and in it we 
find the following elements : 

" A felt need, real, vital, growing out of the un- 
answered past of one's environment. 

" A growing interest and enthusiasm calling for one's 
best energies and resulting in activity. 

" A broad, comprehensive search for related material. 

" An organization of the results of personal activity 
for solving the given project. This summary does not 
differ greatly from Dewey's analysis of the completed 
act of thought." ^ 

The relation of the project to thinking is indicated 
clearly by Charters. 

" An advantage claimed is that the natural setting 
and the great multi-problem with its coherent subordi- 
nate problems make the intellect function in a fuller tide 
of activity. The strong initial motive and the constant 
side lights from practical conditions and immediate 
practical outcomes makes the student think with a 
higher degree of effectiveness." ^ 

The project must grip the pupil in order to be edu- 
cative. The organization of the child's thinking will 
be better if he centers it in a unified theme or problem, 
so well embodied in the project. The pupil's own 
projects, and not the teacher's, quicken and coordinate 
his thinking. 

* Moore, J. C, ** Project Science," School Science and Mathematics, 
Vol. 16, p. 688, 1916. 

2 Charters, W. W., "The Project in Home Economics Teaching," 
Journal of Home Economics, Vol. 16, pp. 117, 118, 1918. 



128 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

III. The Project and Habit-Formation 

It is a recognized fact that drill work is a significant 
function in education; and it is equally true that at 
times we may have overemphasized the value of such 
drill. There is little doubt that a large amount of 
drill has been formal and unrelated to the student's 
problem. Dewey well says : 

" Not less serious is exaggerated emphasis upon drill 
exercises designed to produce skill in action, independ- 
ent of any engagement of thought-exercises having no 
purpose but the production of automatic skill." ^ 

The corrective measure to apply to situations of this 
type is certainly not to propose a scheme which will 
consciously neglect drill work and habit-formation, or 
seemingly make no provision to take care of drills and 
habit-formation. Habits and skills are far too impor- 
tant in education to permit the assumption that they 
will be acquired incidentally in the project method. 
A methodology which makes no provision for habits 
and skills, other than in a purely incidental way, is 
seriously defective and may subject its proponents to 
the serious criticism that they are encouraging " soft 
pedagogy." The importance which should be given 
to provisions for habit-formation is clearly indicated 
by Bagley : 

" The work of habit-building must always be ac- 
corded the most important place in elementary edu- 
^ Dewey, John, "Democracy and Education," p. 209. 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 129 

cation. That habits formed in the school may not 
function in the situations of later life is clearly ap- 
parent. That training may not ' spread ' beyond 
limits of the specific function trained suggests the 
advisability of limiting the strenuous processes of 
habit-building (1) to those automatic responses that 
will be of unquestioned service and (2) to those re- 
sponses that may serve as concrete bases for the later 
development of concepts and ideals of conduct. . . . 
The fault of American schools today lies not in the 
mechanical grind that they are popularly supposed to 
represent, but in the inadequacy of the really small 
measure of drill work that is attempted." ^ 

The need of drill and habit-formation which supple- 
ments the home project in teaching agriculture is 
recognized by Stimson. In the forenoon and after- 
noon groups the first period in each session is given to 
a general study of the productive side of agriculture 
and rural life. Before the close of each session a period 
is set aside to subject individual ideas and plans to 
the criticism of the entire class, to clarify principles, 
and to intensify impressions through drill. The time 
is used to give a single focus of attention through 
collective action. This is a step in the right direction. 
These periods for the single focus of attention should 
be frequent enough to guarantee that skills and habits 
will be formed ; otherwise the pupils will be interested 
in the projects and will fail to get the habits and skills 
they are entitled to receive. 

1 Bagley, W. C, "Educational Values," pp. 137-138, 1911. 



130 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The acquiring of habits and skills may, however, be 
stimulated by the project method. In carrying for- 
ward a given project, the pupils may discover that 
they are lacking in certain habits and skills and that 
their progress is impeded because of this deficiency. 
This realization of the lack creates the natural setting 
for a project in the acquisition of the needed skills and 
habits. For example, in one project in physics, it 
was discovered by the class that they were deficient in 
algebraic equations. It was a third-year class and 
they had had no algebra since their first year in high 
school. Lacking the ability to factor and to solve 
simple algebraic equations, the class made the request 
that this drill be furnished. The writer took five hours 
extra time to complete this project. Another class 
found in a second grade that its game of bean-bag was 
being retarded because of lack of accuracy and speed 
in the addition of simple numbers. A project im- 
mediately developed out of this situation, having for 
its aim the development of speed and accuracy in the 
addition of simple number combinations. 

Both these projects in drill illustrate how projects 
may arise that are primarily concerned with skills 
and habits. These represent problems which arose in 
their natural setting and were carried over into action 
by developing the habits and skills. 

It seems indisputable that the drills and exercises in 
habit-formation will be undertaken with more zeal if 
first introduced through a project than if merely set 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 131 

up as tasks to be done quite apart from any problem ; 
the pupil sees the reason for the drill. 

The weakness of the project in making provision for 
drills and exercises in habit-formation is a real one. 
The difficulty lies in providing for a sufficient number 
of projects which have as one of their outcomes the 
habit or skill which should be developed. On the 
other hand; it is often difficult to bring to the learner 
the need for the habit or skill. To the extent, however, 
that the learner feels or realizes the need for the habits 
and skills, to that extent he will put forth more vigor- 
ous activity and effort to accomplish the task. The 
attempt to minimize the importance of skills and 
habits does not answer the problem. To be accepted 
widely, the project method must make provision in the 
selection of projects to be pursued for the development 
of skills and habits. It must be supplemented by a 
systematic review of the facts learned in the project 
setting. 

IV. The Project and Action 

The technique of carrying an act to completion needs 
to be taught as well as the theory, for the process of 
carrying out a problem to completion is as difficult as 
the learning of the theory. 

This value of the project in developing the technique 
of action is well summarized by Charters : 

" The acquisition of skill in carrying out processes in 
actual practice is an advantage claimed. After the 



132 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

student has learned fruit canning or bread making or 
hat designing in school as a project she is able to can 
fruit, make bread, and design hats at home. She does 
not know mere theory ; she has learned the method of 
performance. The advocates of the project method 
assert that after the theory is learned there is a wide 
zone of danger in carrying out the solution, a zone full 
of difficulties which may ruin the effectiveness of the 
performance. They point to the fact that some stu- 
dents of home economics whose mastery of the theories 
is conceded by the most critical, are very inefficient 
home makers. These advocates explain this by saying 
that the performance of the act itself involves a very 
important technique which needs as careful attention 
as does the solution of the theoretical problems or 
multi-problems. Nor can it be any more safely left 
to chance, they say, in the expectation that the student 
will pick it up for herself at some future time than can 
the learning of the theory. It is essential to a success- 
ful hold upon the subject." ^ 

The theory underlying the preparation and serving 
of a breakfast may have been learned thoroughly by 
the girl in household science. She knows the method 
of making coffee, preparing fruit, cereals, toast, and 
eggs. She has learned the proper method of setting 
the table, and the rules for serving. In the laboratory 
she has carried out each of these small exercises with 
success and could recite thoroughly upon the principles 
underlying each. 

1 Charters, W. W., "The Project in Home Economics," Journal of 
Home Economics, Vol. 10, p. 118, March, 1918. 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 133 

When she accepts the project of preparing the break- 
fast, setting the table, and serving, there is a technique 
involved in trying to carry out all these activities at 
the same time. Her problem would be to use her time 
economically and yet not have the eggs, toast, or coffee 
prepared before the cereals or the fruit. Taking for 
granted that she would eat breakfast with the family, 
her method of procedure would be as follows : First, 
she places the teakettle on the stove and while the 
water is heating she assembles the materials for the 
breakfast and places the breakfast dishes on a tray. 
The water being heated by this time she prepares the 
breakfast food, which usually requires stirring for four 
or five minutes with rapid heat, and then she places 
the cereal in the top of a water bath. She then pre- 
pares the coffee. Next she puts the bread in an 
oven or in a toaster, drops eggs in boiling water for 
poaching, and assuming that three to five minutes will 
be sufficient to cook the coffee, eggs, and toast, that 
time will be used in setting the table. 

This is a real problem that confronts many girls who 
have completed a course in household science. Some 
of them state that the most difficult thing they had to 
learn was to be able to have three or four foods cooking 
at the same time, so started that each will be done at 
the proper time. Much of our teaching has usually 
left this carrying-out process to the pupils ; but this 
cannot be any more safely relegated to chance than 
can the learning of the theory. 



134 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

A statement by Mann commenting on the value of 
carrjdng the problem over into action is significant : 

" Among the professional engineers there is a very 
marked demand for what they call ^ general engineer- 
ing science/ It is pointed out that a man who gradu- 
ates from a civil engineering course frequently makes 
his success in life in mechanical engineering or vice 
versa. It is also pointed out that all engineering prob- 
lems are essentially projects and that many of them 
involve a wide knowledge of the different fields of 
science. To be a successful engineer thus involves 
having the ability to tackle and solve projects effi- 
ciently and this ability is acquired like every other 
ability, by practice and training in doing. It, there- 
fore, follows that the most efficient training of engineers 
is likely to be secured in those schools in which the 
project method of instruction is used most freely." ^ 

It is clear from this statement of Mannas that there 
is a special technique involved in carrying the act to 
completion. Many engineers know the theory, but 
fail in making the applications. The project offers 
a means of providing the training in action. 

The project method takes care of the technique of 
carrying out a complete act. If the boy has been 
taught agriculture by the project method he knows 
how to do things. He does not know merely the 
theoretical phases of growing potatoes ; he has learned 
the method of performance. The project provides for 

^ Mann, C. R., "Project Teaching." General Science Quarterly, 
Vol. 1, p. 14, 1916. 



IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROJECT METHOD 135 

the technique of the completion of the act after the 
theoretical problem has been solved. 

V. Summary 

The project creates interest of a deep-seated sort 
because the interest comes from associative connec- 
tions of many types. The project offers countless 
reservoirs from which interest may be drawn. All 
projects are not interesting, but if a project is selected 
so as to be of interest, the degree of the interest is 
likely to be very high, because of its setting in the 
experience of the student. Of course, it can be shown 
that the possibilities of interest are much greater than 
in the facts acquired in topical organization. The 
project gives the ideal organization of subject matter 
for arousing an aim and the directing of thinking. It 
is a plausible assumption that the thinking most worth 
while to the individual is that which is directed by his 
own aim and not by some one else, or by an aim forced 
upon him. If the pupil has a specific goal which he 
understands and if he knows the difficulty which he 
has to solve, there is little doubt that he will be able to 
select intelligently the material needed for the solution. 
The strong initial motive of the project, with the con- 
stant side lights from practical conditions, chal- 
lenges the student to think with a higher degree of 
effectiveness. 

The importance of habit-formation is too important 
to take it for granted that in using the project method 



136 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

habits will be formed incidentally. A methodology 
which makes no provision for these other than in a 
purely incidental way is seriously defective and makes 
its theory subject to serious criticism. The weakness 
of the project in making provision for drills and 
exercises in habit-formation is genuine. The attempt 
to minimize the importance of skills and habits does 
not answer the problem. The project method, to be 
accepted widely, must make provision for skills and 
habits. It must be supplemented by a systematic 
presentation, organization, review, and repetition. 

The project method takes-^care of the technique of 
carrying out a complete act. If the boy has been 
taught agriculture by the project method, he knows 
how to do things. He has learned the method of 
performance. The project provides for the technique 
of the completion of the act after the theoretical prob- 
lem has been solved. " The acquisition of skill in 
carrying out processes in actual practice " is an ad- 
vantage claimed for the project. 

The relation of the project to the curriculum will be 
taken up in Chapter VI. 



CHAPTER VI 

THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 

I. The Need for Scientific Methods in Curric- 
ulum Organization 

This is the era of efficiency in educational procedure, 
for on all sides there is evidence of quantitative and 
qualitative methods being applied to the problems of 
education. Guess work and hazy impressions are 
being replaced by information wrought out by scientific 
investigations. The results of teaching are to a large 
extent now being measured by standardized tests. 
This scientific procedure has found its way into all 
phases of school administration and supervision. 

Scientific methods applied to curriculum making 
have just made a beginning. This backwardness is 
due pretty largely to the fact that the objectives of 
teaching have not been analyzed. Such objectives as 
" complete living/' '^ adaptation of the individual to 
his environment," " social efficiency," are, without 
further analysis, too general to be of any particular 
help in suggesting materials which make up the cur- 
riculum. Since it has been very difficult to propose a 
definite scheme whereby these vague objectives might 

137 



138 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

be realized, the tendency then has been to fall back on 
the subject matter, without modification, that had been 
in use. 

II. Principles and Illustrations op Curriculum 

Making 

The general principles of curriculum making are 
fairly simple. No matter what type of occupation 
the individual goes into, it will consist in carrying out 
certain activities, in other words, projects. If the 
school through a scientifically organized curriculum is 
to prepare these individuals for rendering efficient 
service, it must give help to the individual in carrying 
on these activities. It follows that in order to give 
this help, those responsible for making the curriculum 
must know what facts, processes, principles, habits, 
skills, and ideals are necessary for the various activi- 
ties for which the curriculum prepares. Since the 
occupations are so numerous, these smaller objectives, 
which the curriculum maker must consider, will be 
far from few. 

There are at least four bases for the construction of 
a curriculum — facts, principles, processes, and proj- 
ects. The first three of these are usually included in 
the type of organization which is known as the logi- 
cal or systematic arrangement of material. Generally 
speaking, then, the principal methods of curriculum 
making are the logical and project methods. 

The logical organization represents a perfected sys- 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 139 

tern, its materials are arranged in subdivisions, topics, 
paragraphs, according to the demands made of the 
material from a logical standpoint. Logical organiza- 
tion demands that the material be put together so that 
there are no omissions and so that each topic can be 
given its relative place in some sort of scheme pre- 
viously determined. 

If the project is made the basis for curriculum 
making, it is necessary to decide what principles 
should be mastered by the students and then select 
projects or groups of projects from which the student 
may select. The projects selected will be such that all 
the facts, principles, and processes will be covered 
which ordinarily are covered in the logical or systematic 
presentation. The facts, principles, and processes are 
now studied as the need arises in carrying the projects 
to completion and the student realizes their functional 
value. 

(a) A Curriculum in Woodworking Based on Projects 

The difference between the construction of the cur- 
riculum based on principles or processes and on projects 
has been worked out by L. R. Fuller, Regional Director 
of Industrial Education. The systematic or logical 
organization of a course in woodworking is indicated 
and the effect of the use of the project on this organiza- 
tion is shown by him.^ 

According to systematic organization in woodwork 
1 Unpublished paper. 



140 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 



the following thirty-two processes are involved. The 
method of dealing with these from the logical or sys- 
tematic point of view would be to give examples, 
illustrations, and drill on each process until fairly well 
mastered and then pass on to the next process. 



1. Planing 

2. Scoring 

3. Sawing 

4. Boring 

5. Sandpapering 

6. Scraping 

7. Bowsawing 

8. Gauging 

9. Nailing 

10. Screwing 

11. Gluing 



12. Countersinking 

13. Spokeshaving 

14. Chiseling 

15. Gouging 

16. Finishing 

17. Laying out 

18. Chamfering 

19. Beveling 

20. Modeling 

21. Carving 

22. Mortising 



23. Mitering 

24. Fitting 

25. Superposing 

26. Dowehng 

27. Inlaying 

28. Assembling 

29. Dadoing 

30. Grinding 

31. Whetting 

32. Filing 



The project method of teaching these thirty-two 
processes would be to select projects the carrying of 
which to completion would involve the processes indi- 
cated above. Projects were analyzed by Fuller to 
find out just what processes would be used. He 
selected projects that involve the type of repairs and 
work needed in the homes. In eight projects, — 
building walks, door, screen, floor, and furniture 
repairs, conveniences for the home, handles in tools, 
and sharpening tools, — he found that all but two of 
the above thirty-two processes were represented, while 
some processes as planing, scoring, and sawing were 
involved in six of the projects. This group of eight 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 141 

projects could be selected, then, as the basis for giving 
training in at least thirty processes. 





Times 






Prooesses 


Used in 

Sekies 


Peojects 


Processes Involved 


1. Planing . . 


8 


Cutting Board 


1 


2. Scoring . . . 


7 


Hat Rack 


1,2, 3,4, 5, 18 


3. Sawing . . . 


7 






4. Boring . . . 


6 


Laundry Register 


1,2,3,4,5,8, 18 


5. Sandpapering . 


7 






6. Scraping . . 


3 


Coat Hanger 


1,2,3,4,5,7,13,14,17,20 


7. Bowsawing 


4 


Knife and Fork 


1, 2, 3,4,5,8,9,17,24,28 


8. Gauging . . 


2 


Box 




9. Fastening nails 


2 


Teapot Block 


1,2,3,5,6,14,16,17,18,27 


10. Screwing 


2 






11. Gluing . . . 


3 


Flower Pot Stand 


1,2,3,4,5,6,8,10,11,16, 
17, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29 


12. Counter-sink- 








ing . . 


1 






13. Spokeshaving . 


3 






14. Chiseling . . 


2 


Table 


1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11, 


15. Gouging . . 


1 




12,13,14,15, 16,17,22, 


16. Finishing . . 


5 




24, 25, 26, 28, 29 


Filling . . 




Tray 


15, 16. 17, 21 


Staining 








Shellacking . 






5, 6, 13. 17, 20, 24 


Varnishing . 








Waxing . . 






11, 16, 17, 19, 23 i 


Painting 








17. Laying Out 


8 


Hammer Handle 




18. Chamfering 


3 




30, 31. 32 


19. Beveling . . 


1 


Picture Frame 




20. Modeling . . 


2 






21. Carving . . 


1 






22. Mortising . . 


1 






23. Mitering . . 


1 






24. Fitting . . . 


4 






25. Superposing . 


2 






26. Doweling . . 


2 






27. Inlaying . . 


1 






28. Assembling 


3 






29. Dadoing . . 


2 






30. Grinding . . 


1 


Sharpening 




31. Whetting . . 


1 


Knives, Forks, 




32. Filing . . . 


1 


Tools 





142 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The foregoing table shows a group of selected projects, 
giving the number of times each of the processes has 
been used in the series of projects. After each project, 
the different processes involved are indicated. The 
numbers to the right of the processes indicate the 
number of times they are employed in the projects 
listed. Each is counted only once to a project. 

It will be noted that in the topical method one would 
teach these thirty-two processes by exercises in those 
particular processes. Teaching these processes by the 
project method, they are learned in connection with 
life situations. The functional value of skills is realized. 
These are problematic acts carried to completion in 
their natural setting. 

If we take one of the projects, the building of walks, 
we find that processes 1, 2, 3, 9, 24 of the systematic 
outline are used, and the project of making a table 
involves twenty-two processes. It will be noticed 
that some of the processes are used many times in the 
completion of the group of projects. Since planing 
and sawing require more practice and are more fre- 
quently used than some of the other processes, it is 
fair to state that these projects were selected with 
the purpose of giving drill where most necessary. 

(b) Illustrations of Curricula Based on Projects 

An interesting reorganization of curricula is being 
worked out by Professor H. M. Goettsch at the Uni- 
versity of Cincinnati. After sixteen weeks' prehmi- 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 143 

nary training in elementary chemistry, the freshmen 
are given problems in industrial chemistry on which 
they work for ten weeks from 8 a.m. to 4 : 30 p.m. 
Thus the principles of industrial chemistry are devel- 
oped as needed in carrying the projects to completion. 

" Projects such as to ' make baking powder and 
determine whether it is better and cheaper than you 
can buy ' are assigned without any instructions or 
references, and the student is required to work out 
his own salvation in the library and the laboratory. 
In the period of ten weeks he completes a number of 
these projects covering a wide range of topics, but 
little effort is made to present the topics in logical or 
any other sort of orderly sequence. Much emphasis 
is placed on synthetic work and on the cost of a given 
product by different processes ; while chemical analysis 
and the ionic theories of matter, which usually occupy 
the center of the stage in chemistry courses, here take 
a subordinate place." ^ 

The Sub-Committee on General Science of the 
National Commission on the Reorganization of Second- 
ary Education is giving serious consideration to aban- 
doning the strict organization of sciences according to 
their content in the first and second years of the high 
school. As a substitute, it is proposed to teach the 
facts, laws, principles, and processes from all the 
sciences in connection with a series of projects. 

1 Mann, C. R., "A Study of Engineering Education." Bulletin of 
the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, pp. 61-62, 
1918. 



144 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" According to the plan proposed the project would 
be the basis of organization for the scientific facts and 
principles that were needed in carrying it out. For 
example, if the project were the raising and marketing 
of an acre of potatoes, the students would study the 
physics and chemistry of the soils and fertilizers, the 
topography and drainage of the ground, the rainfall 
and weather conditions, the structure and physiology 
of the potato plant, the development of varieties by 
breeding, the physical and chemical effects of tillage, 
the insect enemies and the appropriate insecticides, 
the bird enemies of the injurious insects, the cooking 
and the food value of the potato, the nature and uses 
of potato starch, the marketing of the potatoes and so 
on. 

The student in carrying to completion any of the 
projects noted would see and realize the need for 
accurately determined facts. Because he wished to 
learn he would investigate, collect data, and form 
judgments. Facts would be learned from the many 
sciences, not in the logical order, but in the order 
needed in completing the project. 

The following project will illustrate the method 
by which C. W. Stone organized a project so that 
it would cut across many subjects in the curricu- 
lum. This project will illustrate what Dewey calls 
" facts not torn away from their original place and 
experience." 

iTwiss, G. R., "Science Teaching," p. 197. The Macmiflan 
Company, 1917. 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 145 

Plan for Life Topic for Grade I 

Center of Interest : Seasons, Spring 

Topic : Making a Flower Garden at Home 

The following outline shows the work on this topic. 
The subjects in which it works out are industrial 
arts, arithmetic, and m^usic. 

I. Learner's Available Experience 

1. All the children have seen gardening done at 
home. 

2. Many of them have had little plots of their own 
in the big garden at home. 

3. They have had considerable experience in the 
school garden in preparing soil and the several groups 
have planted radishes, lettuce, cosmos, petunias, and 
candytuft. One group planted nasturtium seed 
between the ivy plants around the building. 

II. Teacher's Main Aims 

1. To teach to measure with foot rule. 

2. To add to their interest in gardening by applica- 
tion at home of knowledge gained at school. 

3. To get good expression, both in language and in 
reading. 

4. To increase enjoyment through a story and a 
song which express their own fresh experiences. 

HI. Stages of Teaching 

1. Enabling pupils to feel their need of learning. 
Conversation in which the children are encouraged 
to tell of their little gardens at home, and of their 



146 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

work in the school garden. Proposal to give them 
seed to plant gardens of nasturtiums at home. How 
shall the garden be made in order to have beautiful 
nasturtiums ? (Pupils' aim : To make gardens of their 
own and raise beautiful nasturtiums.) 

2. Enabling pupils to acquire knowledge to satisfy 
their felt needs. 

Industrial work. 

Conversation on how to plant their seed, turning 
on the importance of not crowding plants. Making 
of rules for measuring home gardens. (Good seat 
work.) 

Arithmetic. 

How far apart shall we plant the seeds? Approxi- 
mate space decided on. Lessons with foot rulers teach- 
ing how to measure the exact distance between seeds. 

Literature. 

Story of Marjorie's garden to increase interest and 
add to knowledge by learning how Marjorie managed 
her garden. 

Music. 

The motion song : " In My Little Garden Bed." 

3. (a) Testing results. 

For Industrial Work and Arithmetic: Have the 
children measure an imaginary garden on the floor, 
placing small articles as bits of chalk for seed. 

For English : Thinking for themselves and deciding 
whether they can read the stories. 

For Literature : ReteUing the story in class to see 
whether they are ready to tell it for the enjoyment of 
the others. 

For Music: Singing in class to see whether they 
know the song well enough to sing for the enjoyment of 
the other section, at home, etc. 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 147 

(5) Applying Results. 

For Industrial Work and Arithmetic: Making the 
garden at home. 

For English : Reading the ' stories ^ to each other. 

For Literature : Telling the story to the other sec- 
tion, at home, etc. 

For Music : Singing for the other section, at home, 
etc.i 

(c) Two Plans for the Organization of Subject Matter in 
the Curriculum 

Another example taken from the field of industrial 
education shows how the project cuts across many 
of the subjects of the curriculum, in other words, how 
it destroys the logical order of organization. This 
method is described by C. R. AUen.^ 

As suggested by Allen there are two plans for the 
organization of subject matter in the curriculum. The 
one is the method by independent subjects and the 
other the scheme of major and minor subjects. These 
two plans have been recognized. 

The former method has selected the desirable sub- 
jects to be taught in the curriculum and has made 
plans for their development independently. The vari- 
ous subjects in the high school curriculum have been 
treated as separate units, with little provision made 
for connecting the different subjects. History is 

1 Stone, C. W. Outline sent to the writer. 

2 Allen, C. R., "The Project Method and the Combination of the 
Project Method with the Phase System." Massachusetts Board of 
Education, Bulletin 75, pp. 40-47. 



148 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 



taught chronologically, but is not connected with 
civics. Mathematics is taken up according to the 
logical arrangement of the textbook and often does 
not relate to drawing, to physics, or to chemistry. 
Allen illustrates this scheme by the following diagram : 

History English Mathematics Civics Drawing 



The line AB may represent the particular items of 
knowledge learned by the pupils on a given day by the 
independent organization. It is quite improbable that 
the knowledge learned in mathematics will have any 
relation to the drawing, to the English, or to history. 
'' It is very improbable, for example, that if his history 
lesson deals with the method of administering justice 
in England in the Middle Ages that his civics lesson 
at the same time will deal with the modern method of 
court procedure which is derived from the old English 
procedure ; that if his civics lesson deals with a ques- 
tion of community planning, his drawing lesson will 
in any way involve, for example, the laying out of a 
park plan on paper.'' 

It would be advantageous if the independent courses 
could be so arranged that the different lessons learned 
on the same day could center around the same problem 
or idea. Under the independent scheme of organiza- 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 



149 



tion, the boy in the shop finds it practically impossible 
to secure technical information in the different subjects 
at the time he needs it. In the drawing job he needs 
the assistance of certain formulae for the particular 
job, in the history of the trade, how the operation was 
performed a hundred years ago. Under the arrange- 
ment by independent subjects he may get some of this 
information next week or perhaps he had some of it 
so long ago that he has forgotten it. 

If the subject matter of the different subjects could 
be taken up at the time when it was needed in connec- 
tion with some particular job, the students would 
realize its functional value. The correlation in such 
a case would be 

A 

excellent. 

In contrast with 
the method of inde- 
pendent subjects, 
the " major and 

minor subject ^' ^ 

scheme is based 
upon the idea of 
selecting some one 
subject considered 
to be of primary 
importance, sub- 
ordinating the other subjects to that ^ major subject.' 
In the illustration, the requirements of the shop work 
will determine the order of all other lines of instruction. 



B 



150 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" In such an organization when the boy has the 
turning of a taper in the machine shop, he gets at that 
time, in his materials of trade, the study of the problem 
of the selection of proper stock; in his mathematics, 
the figuring of the offset ; and in his history of trade, 
the information as to how they got a taper before they 
had a lathe. Under this method the only line of work 
which would show logical progression would be the 
shop work. If we were to take the materials of trade, 
the mathematics or the history, and should arrange 
those topics as they might come to the boy, they 
would offer an entirely disconnected series, the only 
progressive subject being his shop experience. This 
scheme is indicated in the diagram, where the line AB 
would indicate the progress of the boy in the shop 
work, the line CD would indicate the point where he 
had reached the problem of turning a taper, and the 
various arrows pointing to that particular point would 
indicate the parts of such subjects as materials of trade, 
mathematics, etc., which bear upon that particular 
problem. 

" Since the above method of instruction is based 
upon the idea of selecting the most important subject 
and subordinating all other subjects to that, it obviously 
affords opportunity for a much closer correlation than 
the first scheme. It is much more likely to meet the 
condition in the earlier stages of the average pupil's 
progress, where the dominant subject is unquestion- 
ably shop experience. In suggesting this method for 
use in the vocational schools, there has simply been 
recommended the plan which has been always recog- 
nized as the more efficient of the two." ^ 

1 Allen, C. R., "The Project Method and the Combination of the 
Project Method with the Phase System." Massachusetts Board of 
Education, Bulletin 75, pp. 40-45. 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 151 

The main reason which the writer gives for this 
method is that in an industrial school it teaches the 
student to know how to perform the processes necessary 
to carry on his trade and insures that he will be paid 
for what he can do. If the primary aim were to impart 
information, the method of independent subjects might 
be used effectively. 

The writer indicates which of these two methods is 
named the project. " To experiences in a major sub- 
ject; around which are grouped the fragments of minor 
related subjects that apply, we have given the name 
' project/ and the method of instruction based upon a 
series of such projects we have called the ' project 
method.' '' 

The educational use of the project, according to 
this writer, " implies that in connection with the dis- 
charge of a responsibility, problems must be solved, 
the solution of which involves an educational experience, 
and that there is a problem in some major subject of 
instruction, the solution of which requires the student 
to acquire and apply fragments of minor subjects. 
According to the aim of the course of instruction, the 
portion of the major subject, or ' core ' of the project, 
may lie in any field of instruction. For example, the 
major subject might lie in the field of English compo- 
sition. In writing a composition the pupil must write, 
spell, apply grammatical rules, use figures of speech, 
and in general, apply to that particular problem 
(writing the composition) fragments drawn from the 
fields covered by the subjects commonly taught under 
the names of ^ spelling ' ' penmanship ' ^ English gram- 



152 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

mar/ and ^ rhetoric' In a similar way, projects might 
be organized around a ^ core ' taken from the field of 
history or mathematics or civics." ^ 

III. Projects Need Not Cut Across Subjects of 
THE Curriculum 

These examples might seem to convey the idea that 
for complete success with the project method, it would 
be necessary to have it cut across two or more subjects 
of the curriculum. This is not a necessary inference, 
nor is this cutting across many subjects of the curricu- 
lum a necessary element in the efficiency of the proj- 
ect method. It is true that the projects may be so 
selected as to include two or more subjects of the 
curriculum, but it is likewise true that the work can 
be made just as effective if the project is kept within 
the limit of a given subject. The installation of a 
bell system in the home falls within the field of physics. 
Testing the baking powder for the home falls within 
the field of chemistry. The preparation of the meals 
at home or canning fruit falls within the field of home 
economics. 

IV. Obsolete Material in School Curricula 

The criticism of schools and school curricula for their 
failure to give instruction which is practical, instruc- 
tion along project lines, is due in large measure to the 

1 Allen, C. R., " The Project Method and the Combination of the 
Project Method with the Phase System." Massachusetts Board of 
Education, Bulletin 75, pp. 44-45. 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 153 

fact that we rarely eliminate from our textbooks but 
are constantly adding. It takes a long time to elimi- 
nate from the textbooks and courses of study operations 
and materials which have become obsolete. This 
situation is due in part to the lack of an opportunity 
to use the material of the curriculum in solving diffi- 
culties arising in their natural setting, in the pupil's 
home and school life. The project method eliminates 
obsolete material for it uses only such subject matter 
as is necessary for the solution of the project.'^ 

V. The Project as the Basis for Curriculum 
Organization 

If the projects which the farmer is called upon to 
carry out in his work were carefully classified and the 
data selected from a large number representing different 
localities, this series of projects, with the principles 
which they define and illustrate, would be a most 
effective basis for use in the organization of the cur- 
riculum in agriculture. It would be possible, although 
difficult, to collect a large number of life-projects in 
the various occupations, industries, and professions. 

^" This shortcoming may be laid at the door of that false conception 
of the object of education as mere knowledge. Such a conception de- 
feats its own end, as knowledge is defined as past experience organized 
to meet the demands and problems of new experience. Instruction is 
not complete until application of facts learned has been made and their 
usefulness demonstrated by the solution of problems of a practical 
character which develop out of the study itself and which possess a 
powerful appeal to the pupil." — Yearbook of Francis W. Parker 
School, Vol. 4, p. 5. 



154 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

If these projects were national in their scope, the 
materials used in carrying them to completion would 
form a partial basis for the curriculum. There is 
serious difficulty in trying to organize a curriculum 
based entirely upon the material from this source. 
Great care would have to be taken in the completeness 
of the selection of the projects ; the principles under- 
lying them would have to be defined ; and, again, a 
course of study based entirely on this idea might be 
subject to the criticism that we are training the stu- 
dents to meet situations which, in all probability, will 
no longer exist when they are ready to use this material. 
This method of building up the curriculum in agri- 
culture is clearly presented by Bobbitt. 

" The curriculum-discoverer wishes, for example, to 
draw up a course of training in agriculture. He will 
go out into the practical world of agriculture as the 
only place that can reveal the objectives of agricultural 
education. He will start out without prejudgment as 
to the specific objectives. All that he needs for the 
work is pencil, notebook, and a discerning intelligence. 
He will observe the work of the farmers ; he will talk 
with them about all aspects of their work ; and he will 
read reliable accounts which give insight into their 
activities. From these sources he will discover the 
particular things that the farmers do in carrying on 
each piece of work ; the specific knowledge which the 
farmers employ in planning and performing each 
specific task; the kinds of judgment at which they 
must arrive ; the types of problems they must solve ; 
the habits and skills demanded by the state; the 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 155 

attitudes of mind; appreciations, valuations, ambitions, 
and desires, which motivate and exercise general 
control." 1 

If this method of curriculum organization be used, — 
that is, a compilation of the life projects in that field, — 
it will be well to supplement it with a systematic 
organization. The systematic or logical point of view 
will give the learner more cues to aid him in solving a 
new problem. Principles will not be tied up in a 
few concrete examples.^ 

Though there are many practical diflSculties seen in 
attempting to use this method as the basis for cur- 
riculum organization and construction, and while few 
of even the most enthusiastic advocates would recom- 

1 Bobbitt, F., " The Curriculum," pp. 48, 49. 

2 The necessity of giving a systematic view or a complete concep- 
tion of the subject, when using the project method in chemistry, is 
emphasized by Mann. " For a series of interesting projects that does 
not eventually compel the student to work out a fairly complete con- 
ception of the large theories and the important principles of chemistry 
is obviously inadequate, no matter how enthusiastic the students are 
at work. On the other hand, although the suggestion that an effective 
course can be constructed as a series of apparently disconnected proj- 
ects comes as a shock to those who have grown up with logically rigor- 
ous courses, the value of the enthusiasm engendered by well-chosen 
projects must not be overlooked. Our most valuable information and 
training come from working out projects that are really worth while ; 
and if this method works in life, why not in school? Especially since 
in educational institutions it is always possible to organize significant 
projects into a connected series that leaves a well-developed concep- 
tion of the whole subject in the student's mind." — Mann, C. R., "A 
Study of Engineering Education." The Carnegie Foundation for the 
Advancement of Teaching, p. 62, 1918. 



156 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

mend that it be used as the only method in determining 
minimal essentials of subject matter, yet there is no 
excuse for not collecting these data as widely as possible 
and using them for what they are worth. No one 
can doubt that it will be valuable for the project to 
become " the center of logical organization for the 
information gained, just as it does in the case of the 
problems worked out by the farmer, the mechanic, the 
municipal engineer, the industrial manager, or the 
intelligent home keeper, who brings results to pass in 
the world of adult activity. Time may be and should 
be taken, at intervals, to organize the information 
gained in working out the projects, in accordance with 
the reference book or a compendium type of arrange- 
ment ; and this work of organization may constitute 
a series of projects in themselves which will arouse 
much interest, if skillfully handled.'^ ^ 

VI. SUMMAKY 

The method of organizing the curriculum on the 
basis of the project method is well summarized by 
Charters. 

" If the project is to be made the basis of the cur- 
riculum, it is necessary for the teacher to decide as 
scientifically as possible what principles and processes 
should be mastered by the student and then to select 
not single projects but groups of projects so arranged 

1 Twiss, G. R., "Science Teaching," p. 423. The Macmillan Com- 
pany, 1917. 



THE PROJECT AND THE CURRICULUM 157 

that election of projects is made possible with the 
certainty that all essential facts, processes, and prin- 
ciples will be covered. Then, when the principles 
and processes have been covered by the project 
method in class, enough time should be left in the 
course so that the subject matter may be systematized. 
First, the project is used for the approach to all parts 
of the subject, and then a systematizing study of the 
field follows as an extended summary." ^ 

* Charters, W. W., "The Project in Home Economics Teaching," 
Journal of Home Economics, Vol. 10, p. 117, March, 1918. 



CHAPTER VII 

APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 

In Chapter III it was stated that while the term 
project has been but recently added to our educational 
terminology, the idea behind the term has been used 
with some modification in many subjects, such as 
engineering, medicine, law, journalism, salesmanship, 
and foreign language teaching. The uses which these 
different subjects have made of the project idea will 
be discussed in this chapter. 

I. Engineering.^ 

An attempt to approximate the project idea has been 
back of some of the methods in engineering education 
since the foundation of the first engineering school in 
America, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute founded 
in 1824. The Rensselaer school was not able at first 
to own its own shops, but the founder directed — 

'^ that with the consent of the proprietors, a number of 
well-cultivated farms and workshops in the vicinity 
of the school be entered on the records of the school as 

1 Mann, C. R., "A Study of Engineering Education." Bulletin of 
the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1918. 
(This report gives in detail the methods of teaching Engineering and 
the use of the project method.) 

158 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 159 

places of scholastic exercises for the students, where 
the application of the sciences may be most conveniently 
taught." 

The first curriculum at Rensselaer required for com- 
pletion one year, divided into three terms. The 
students began with an " experimental term," gather- 
ing specimens and visiting shops and factories near the 
school, later discussing in class the information ob- 
tained. In the last nine weeks of the year the students 
applied their knowledge to practical projects in the 
local engineering shops. Mann's description is in- 
teresting : 

" The students are required in the first three weeks 
of the first term to examine the operations of artists 
and manufacturers at the school workshops under the 
direction of a professor or assistant, who shall explain 
the scientific principles upon which such operations 
depend, four hours on each of six days in every week. 
This plan is identical in principle with that now in 
use at the Sheffield Scientific School at Yale. There 
the students spend their whole time for three weeks 
before the opening of the second year in a well-organized 
course of this sort called ^ mechanical technology.' 
The boys do no actual manual work in shops. The 
purpose of the course as stated in the catalogue is, 
' to acquaint the student with the terms and processes 
in use in manufacturing and power plants, and to give 
him some personal contact with engineering work 
before taking up his studies in the classroom and the 
drafting room.' " 



160 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Both of these methods illustrate the effort made 
to raise the problem in its natural setting. The 
students see the commercial operations in their natural 
setting and to that extent the procedure approaches 
the idea of the project. The exercises are not true 
projects because the students did not carry out any of 
the processes ; they did not acquire any manual skill, 
nor were principles developed as needed in carrying 
any of the processes to completion. 

Another method of handling the shop problem is 
illustrated at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute. 
There on the campus is established a small manu- 
facturing plant where twenty journeymen are regularly 
employed and articles made for the open market. 
The students work side by side with the journeymen, 
but are relieved by them of much of the monotonous 
repetition. Apparently the students are not kept at 
a process longer than is necessary to obtain a fair 
mastery. In addition to this, the students are given 
thorough training in scientific shop management. 

This method illustrates the project method. The 
only place at which it seems to fall short is in the lack 
of this small plant's facilities to present real typical 
manufacturing projects, although the students un- 
doubtedly receive excellent training in the few processes 
required for the business of this particular shop. A 
plant of this sort will necessarily be small and will not 
be so well equipped as are the regular commercial 
plants; consequently the projects will not be quite 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 161 

typical. The Worcester plan gives training in the 
principles and processes of engineering under industrial 
conditions.^ 

Another interesting approach to the project method 
is carried out in connection with the shop work in 
the engineering college at the University of Illinois. 
The production of a salable article is regarded as an 
essential part of the shop training. The manufacturing 
of a two-cylinder gasoline engine was the first project 
undertaken. Plans of operation by the most efficient 
methods, within limits, were developed. The whole 
idea was to present to the students a progressive shop 
with a corresponding progressive policy. 

This phase of the work is commented on by Benedict : 

" The scope of the mechanical organization was the 
same as in commercial shop practice when similar 
results were sought, and it may fairly be said that in 
respect to methods and facilities the shop laboratories 
are on an equal plane of efficiency with any well or- 
ganized industrial plant engaged in manufacturing 
similar products." ^ 

While emphasis is placed on the mechanical facilities 
for production, yet the main training which this ex- 

1 "The manufacturing shop is a working model for the study of the 
technique of business and of practice. The productive nature of the 
work and the objective test of its salabihty are two of its important 
characteristics that tend to make the experience significant." Mann, 
C. R., "A Study of Engineering Education," p. 76. 

2 Benedict, B. W., "Shop Instruction at the University of lUinois.'' 
Bulletin, Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education, Vol. 6, 
p. 239, December, 1915. 



162 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

periment seeks is that of demonstrating the principles 
underlying modern commercial methods of manu- 
facturing. Each student or group of students has a 
different role to play, so that by the end of the year, 
all have had experience in every phase of production 
and manufacturing. The experiment has many of 
the project elements. There is an effort made to have 
the work developed in a natural setting, for one of 
the conditions stated by Benedict is that the shop 
laboratories must be " true to life " ; i.e., correspond 
in all essentials of methods and equipment to com- 
mercial plants of recognized merit. Although this 
is a very effective laboratory method, it does not 
illustrate a true project. Principles are not developed 
by the students as needed, for, in a large measure, the 
students merely follow directions. 

The method used in the University of Illinois and 
its relation to the project is well summarized by Mann. 

" In this Illinois plan construction is still an integral 
part of instruction ; but the omission of the journey- 
man mechanics shifts the emphasis from actual com- 
mercial production, subject to the obje€tive test of 
salability in the open market, to instruction about 
methods of commercial production. The shop be- 
comes a ' shop laboratory ^ and the manipulation^ 
there partake of the nature of experiments designed 
to verify the principles of production that are operative 
in the industrial world, rather than to solve problems 
that arise in connection with their productive activities. 
As in most current laboratory work, the chief problem 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 163 

for the student is likely to be that of following di- 
rections intelligently, rather than that of finding the 
answers to questions that cannot be answered without 
making laboratory tests/' ^ 

The most elaborate attempt to institute the natural 
setting for engineering problems has been developed 
by Schneider at the University of Cincinnati. It is 
known as the " cooperative system " of education. 
The development of this system was due to the fact 
that the old apprenticeship system had broken down 
under the strain of the varied commercial demands 
and that the colleges of engineering were making little 
effort to connect theory and practice. The colleges 
that were attempting to give practice were maintaining 
their own shops and plants at a tremendous expense. 
It became apparent that to try to keep up with il- 
lustrative shops would be out of the question. To 
Professor Schneider belongs the credit for planning 
a course which could use the established manufacturing 
plants for the practical training, thereby allowing the 
University of Cincinnati to devote its energies to the 
theoretical. 

The course outHned by Professor Schneider in en- 
gineering covers five years of eleven months each. 
The work is alternated so that the students may spend 
two weeks out of four in the University and two weeks 
in the cooperating manufacturing plants. There are 
two shifts of students, so that while one group is in 
1 Mann, C. R., "A Study of Engineering Education," p. 77. 



164 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

the University the other is in the plants. The practical 
work is carried on continuously. The cooperating 
firms represent every important phase of engineering, 
and the work is so arranged that the student will 
be able to get practical training in all phases of his 
specialty. In railway engineering he will work out 
problems in connection with a real railroad. The work 
of the course is outlined so that there is constant cor- 
relation between the work done in the plants and that 
done in the University. The practical projects under- 
taken determine the subject matter to be taught in the 
period spent in the classroom. 

There seems to be heightened interest in both the 
practical and theoretical work. The wages earned by 
the students in the cooperative plants give an added 
incentive. The scheme has had a wholesome influence 
on the curriculum as a whole and on the subject matter 
of the different courses. Descriptive material that has 
no apparent place is eliminated and the additional 
time is spent in drilling on fundamentals. 

The feature of the cooperative education which is 
the most important from the school standpoint is the 
" realization of theory through its practical applica- 
tion." The practical work, carried on in the coopera- 
tive factories, creates for the students problems which 
demand solution. The cooperative course is so graded 
that no task is undertaken which is beyond the student's 
ability. The problem of doing a certain task demands 
that he apply his theory gained in the previous two 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 165 

weeks' period and apply it to this situation. In ad- 
dition new problems arise which demand solution 
during the practice terms, allowing the student oppor- 
tunity to develop principles as needed. 

The cooperative plan offers the advantage of pro- 
viding a real shop atmosphere where commercial prod- 
ucts of a large variety are manufactured and subjected 
to the test of their salability. By this scheme projects 
are carried to completion in their natural setting. 

Another interesting approach to the project method 
is the method developed or practiced in some engineer- 
ing colleges in connection with the practical work of 
surveying. The practice work usually given in con- 
nection with the surveying courses has been (l) the 
surveying of the campus, (2) the summer-camp work 
where a certain amount of territory is assigned, and 
(3) actual practical work. Professor C. E. Sherman 
gives the account of the beginning of the Summer 
Surveying Courses at the Ohio State University. 

" In response to student sentiment, and in view 
of the fact that the campus exercises gave no notice- 
able proficiency in the use of the instruments, nor an 
adequate idea of procedure in the field, a special course 
in field practice was tried in June, 1888. 

" The class of seven second-year civil engineers in 
charge of Professor Brown, after studying land and 
railroad surveying for a year, spent one week in June 
in making a reconnaissance, preliminary, and location 
survey for a proposed electric railway two and a half 
miles long, between two small towns distant about 



166 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

60 miles from the University in the rough southeastern 
portion of Ohio. Most of the field work was completed, 
map drawn up in pencil, and earthwork partly figured 
before leaving the field." ^ 

In 1900 the University authorities provided a camp 
equipment and this practice training was continued in 
the camps from 1900 to 1902. These camps gave ex- 
cellent practice, furnishing an opportunity to show the 
difficulties met in surveying that would not be brought 
out on the level campus. The work was rotated, in 
order to give the students different types of training. 
Office work was done each night, — plotting notes, 
inking maps, and calculating earth work. 

This work did not constitute a true project, but 
rather a multi-problem. The work was done to pass 
a school requirement and to give laboratory work. 

The students who were excused from these " labora- 
tory " camps to go on practical work came back to 
their tasks in the fall with so fine a spirit that after 
three sessions it was decided to try the practical sum- 
mer-camp system. 

The work of the practical summer camp is done under 
the supervision of one of the university instructors 
who acts in the capacity of a foreman. The experience 
of the class as a whole varies widely in amount and 
character, but this may be looked upon as an advantage, 

1 Sherman, C. E. and Schlafly, R. K., " Summer Surveying Courses 
at the Ohio State University." Engineering Education, Vol. 21, pp. 278- 
319. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 167 

for, " in the work before the class in the lecture room, 
it arouses the members when points are brought for- 
ward from their collective experience." The aim of 
the department has not been to give identical training 
to each member of the camp, but rather to provide 
a real task, " the accomplishing of which will forcibly 
illustrate to the student the use of the instruments and 
methods of his calling." ^ When the student sees in- 
structors attempting real problems and reljdng on each 
to do his share, it encourages a spirit difficult to get in 
imaginary or practice problems. The students are 
expected to give suggestions and to question the work 
at any stage. 

The practical summer camp and actual employment 
with practicing surveyors are both superior to the 
practice summer camp. The advantages for the 
practical summer-camp work are : 

(1) The student gets more thorough drill on a few 
principles even though not such a broad training. 

(2) The sense of responsibility is increased. 

(3) The job creates greater interest and enthusiasm. 
The opponents of the practical summer-camp schemo 

maintain that in the practical camp it is " difficult to 
adapt the work to meet exactly the educational needs 
of the students, the incessant and comprehensive drill 
in fundamental principles." 

^ Sherman, C. E. and Schlafly, R. K., " Summer Surveying Courses 
at the Ohio State University." Engineering Education, Vol. 21, 
p. 313. 



168 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The practical surveying approximates the project. 
If, however, the purpose is merely to illustrate principles 
previously learned then it is not a project because there 
are no problems involved. On the other hand, if 
principles are developed in this practical work as 
needed, then it is the project method. Problematic 
acts are carried to completion in their natural setting. 

II. The Legal and Medical Clinics 

Some of the ideas embodied in project teaching have 
been incorporated in medical education under the 
interneship and clinics. Recently the need recognized 
in legal education for a type of training which would 
give the students practice in carrying through a case 
in its natural setting has led to a type of teaching 
known as the legal clinic. 

It is now generally conceded that training in legal 
reasoning and substantive law can be most economically 
learned in the law school. This point is emphasized 
by E. M. Morgan : 

"It is doubtless true that familiarity with the 
principles of practice and their application could be 
most effectively acquired in some offices, if the lawyers 
in charge thereof were so minded. But only in those 
offices having a general practice could anything like 
a comprehensive knowledge of the subject be attained 
without a great deal of independent investigation. At 
present, the offices of general practice are few ; and in 
those few offices the time of the experienced men is 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 169 

considered too valuable to be spent in the instruction 
of embryo jurists." ^ 

The instructors in the law schools are beginning to 
feel that some provision should be made to give this 
training in practice in connection with the work of the 
law school. As Morgan indicates : 

" There would seem to be no more reason for failing 
or refusing to teach the principles of practice than 
for dropping the usual courses on pleading and evi- 
dence. Why should a law school teach the requisites 
of pleadings, the effect of defects and irregularities 
therein, and the methods of attacking them, and re- 
fuse to give instruction as to the same matters with 
reference to process ? Is it less essential that a student 
know the effect of an appearance than that he know 
the effect of pleading over ? The principles underlying 
the right to a jury, the selection of jurors, and the right 
to open and close, to take or force a dismissal, and to 
secure a directed verdict ; the rules governing instruc- 
tions to the jury and requests therefor; . . , the 
privileges and limitations of counsel in arguing to the 
jury; the prerequisites and grounds of motions for 
a new trial, judgment notwithstanding the verdict, or 
an appeal — all these and other matters of practice are 
fully as important as the rules of evidence. They 
are almost as adequately treated in the decisions, and 
are as readily and as satisfactorily taught by the case 
method. And, in fact, the rules of pleading and 
evidence are of little practical value unless properly 
articulated with the rules and principles of practice." ^ 

1 Morgan, E. M., " The Legal Clinic." American Law School Review, 
Vol. 4, p. 255, March, 1917. ^ Morgan, E. M., op. cit, p. 252. 



170 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

It is possible to be familiar with the principles and 
rules of evidences and practice and not be able to rec- 
ognize their applicability to a given case. This situa- 
tion is similar to one in which the girl in household 
science may know the principles of a balanced meal, 
the principles of interior decoration, and yet may be 
helpless in applying these to the improvement of home 
conditions. 

The real test of ability in practice is shown in the 
power to apply rules to concrete cases. In law like- 
wise, — 

" the real criterion of one's knowledge of procedure 
is one's ability to apply its rules, as well as the principles 
of substantive law, not to cases where only the relevant 
and material facts are given, but to cases as they 
actually arise in everyday life and as they are presented 
in court." ^ 

In attempting to provide a substitute for real prac- 
tice, the moot or practice court was proposed. This 
has many advantages in that it gives a certain amount 
of technique in carrying a case forward to completion. 
Evidence is taken, briefs are prepared, and the plead- 
ings made, yet the one serious drawback is that the 
situation is not real. There are no real witnesses, 
the whole thing lacks the human element. The student 
has no responsibility to protect the rights of the client, 
" the so-called witnesses are ready to his hand ; they 

1 Morgan, E. M., " The Legal Clinic." American Law School Review, 
Vol. 4, p. 255, March, 1917. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 171 

are usually able clearly and intelligently to tell their 
stories, and to distinguish the material from the im- 
material." ^ 

In order to overcome some of the deficiencies in 
obtaining practice in legal procedure, the University 
of Minnesota in 1913 began an experiment in coopera- 
tion with the Associated Charities of Minneapolis. 
A young practicing attorney, who was later given as 
an assistant another young member of the bar, was 
in charge of the experiment, and was appointed an 
instructor in practice in the University Law School. 
Each student spends three weeks in this work. He 
works out the cases, interviews clients, takes down 
testimony, investigates facts, negotiates for settle- 
ment, and drafts the pleadings. His mistakes are 
pointed out and he is required to correct them. The 
experience gained is varied. About three hundred 
cases are handled a month. The cases are compara- 
tively insignificant as far as the momentary consequence 
is concerned, yet they are illustrative of innumerable 
points in law. The course serves to round out the 
course in practice, it makes up the deficiency after the 
study of the principles, and it makes the work real — 
there are real cases tried. The student, moreover, 
is trained to deal with different types of individuals. 

The objection usually urged against the legal clinic 
is that too few cases are tried to make it worth while. 

1 Morgan, E. M., " The Legal Clinic." American Law School Review, 
Vol. 4, p. 256, March, 1917. 



172 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Professor John H. Wigmore, Northwestern University 
Law School, answers : 

" The objection that the range of cases in legal work 
is not sufl&ciently varied has sometimes been raised 
by members of the bar, even in large cities. But a full 
acquaintance with the work of an active legal aid 
society would dispel the objection. The variety of 
cases is certainly far greater than in any single law 
ofl&ce. Do you know that the largest law office in 
the United States is the Legal Aid Society of New 
York with nearly 40,000 new cases annually? Do 
you know that the next largest law office is the Legal 
Aid Society of Chicago with 12,000 cases annually? 
The litigation arising out of these cases runs into every 
court in the country, and involves the use of practically 
every variety of legal document. In more than one 
case, the society's attorneys have helped to make law 
both in the supreme court and in the legislature's 
sessions." ^ 

A brief survey of the methods that have been and 
are now being employed in the study of law will show 
that the use of the legal clinic is an outgrowth of an 
effort to make the law teaching not only more interest- 
ing, but more thorough and more practical. 

The first method employed was the learning of the 
principles of law, with some illustrations. This method 
is no longer used in the best law schools. It is rec- 
ognized that such a method gives no more than a 
superficial knowledge of the law. The technique of 

1 Wigmore, John H., " The Legal CHnic." Case and Comment, 
Vol. 28, p. 974, May, 1917. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 173 

the case, the points of contention, etc., are eHminated. 
The study of Blackstone as the only text illustrates 
this method. The merit of the case system as indicated 
by Ballantine — 

'^ is mainly due to the fact that the cases present con- 
crete problems in the application of legal principles 
to facts, and afford an opportunity for arguing how the 
rules of law should be formulated. But the student 
usually regards the cases, not as problems demanding 
solution, but as problems already solved by the judge, 
to be studied by him as authoritative statements of 
the law. His task is that of understanding the judicial 
opinion." ^ 

In order to make the case system more vital Ballan- 
tine suggests the introduction of problems : 

" Even if the professor puts problems in the course 
of classroom discussion, that subject having been 
covered, the student does not take the problem home 
with him for individual original thought. In reading 
the cases it does not occur to him ordinarily to compare 
the various cases that he reads. The average student 
does not seem to have any adequate conception of 
what he is supposed to do with the cases assigned. He 
does not know what he is looking for, or what to put 
his effort upon. The study hours are confined largely 
to assimilative reading, and the abstracting and ab- 
sorption of the doctrines laid down in the opinion. 

" Problems may then be advantageously employed 

^ Ballantine, H. W., " Teaching Contracts with the Aid of Problems." 
American Law School Review, Vol. 4, p. 118, June, 1916. 



174 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

for advance study as well as for review. Instead of 
simply giving out problems in class after the cases have 
been covered, why not assign one or two problems for 
each meeting of the course, involving a practical ap- 
plication of the text or cases to be studied ? Let oral 
or written solution be prepared, using the casebook or 
textbook as the place for original research. In this 
way the student will seek for and grasp the principles 
of a case as something to be used, not merely to be 
studied and learned for its own sake. Under such 
stimulus the student should be able to read many more 
cases, with much greater intensity of effort, concen- 
tration, and comprehension." ^ 

The legal clinic is but an additional effort to pro- 
vide a more real and vital method for teaching the 
principles of procedure. If the student in the legal 
clinic could actually do all the pleading and take com- 
plete charge of the case, it would constitute a project. 
To the extent that he carries the process toward com- 
pletion, it approximates the project method. 

The case method has been considered by some edu- 
cators as the project method of teaching law, because, 
as they pointed out, the method of finding the points 
of law as stated in the cases is exactly the one the 
lawyer uses in practice. The case method does not 
meet the requirements of the project because it does 
not provide a natural setting for the problem. The 
case is usually solved and the mental activity which 

1 Ballantine, H. W., " Teaching Contracts with the Aid of Problems." 
American Law School Review, Vol. 4, p. 118, June, 1916. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 175 

is required of the student is the understanding of the 
case as presented. 

The objections raised to the legal clinic are interest- 
ing because of the light they throw on the limitations 
of the project method in practically all forms of edu- 
cation : 

(1) The legal clinic is inadequate to give a wide range 
of practical experience. Important cases in law will 
not be intrusted to the care of beginners. 

(2) The training of the clinic is likely to be unsys- 
tematic, unless supplemented by a systematic review. 

(3) The time taken by the clinic work is not justifi- 
able. 

(4) Since the state only may set up a court, it will 
be impossible for students to carry the case to com- 
pletion before they are admitted to the bar. 

The points in favor of the clinic are : 

(1) It gives some actual experience. It teaches the 
method of carrjdng a case through to completion. 

(2) The work in the clinic is done with a high degree 
of interest, 

(3) It provides a natural situation. 

The experience of the medical schools has shown that 
students may know the theory of diagnosis as repre- 
sented in their ability to solve theoretical cases, and 
yet be helpless at first in a real situation. They may 
know the theory of operating, may have observed 
operations, may have helped in a few cases, and yet 
may fail when the responsibility rests on them to carry 



176 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

out the whole operation. This is parallel to the 
handicap of the law student who knows the theory 
of the case and of court procedure and yet may not 
be able to carry out a case when facing a real jury with 
a real client. 

A number of physicians and surgeons of Chicago, 
some of them recognized as leaders, were asked to give 
the outstanding deficiencies of the graduates of the 
leading medical schools, as observed when these 
graduates began their interneships. Two were given 
by each of the fourteen physicians and surgeons con- 
sulted : 

(1) The graduates have a large number of facts, 
but they are not evaluated. All facts seem to stand 
on the same dead level. 

(2) The graduates have no skill in surgery. Some 
reported that few had any idea of the simplest technique. 

The medical schools in order to provide for this 
special technique have instituted the clinic. The ma- 
terial for the medical clinic is abundant and repre- 
sentative ; the cases presented for treatment are real 
and are as difficult to diagnose and treat as the cases 
which the practitioner will meet. The difficulty is 
that all the students observe while the lecturer does 
the work. The students rarely have the opportunity 
to take part in the work. 

The leading schools are now recommending that 
the graduates complete an interneship before going 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 177 

into practice, for it is claimed that the variety of cases 
which the interne takes care of during this period of 
apprenticeship is Hkely to be greater than those met 
in the first ten years of practice. In fact, the great 
advantage which is claimed for the interneship is the 
large number and the variety of cases over which the 
young doctor must take complete charge. 

After completing the interneship, the young doctor 
has confidence in himself for he has now not only 
solved hypothetical cases, but he has also actually 
received the patient, made the diagnosis, prescribed 
the remedy, watched the daily results, given direc- 
tions to the nurse, made the patient realize the neces- 
sity of following directions, looked after the diet and 
at the same time studied the case, reviewing principles 
which had been previously learned and mastering new 
principles. 

The method of teaching practice to the doctor 
by the clinic and the interneship illustrates in a 
measure the project method. The diagnosis of a 
theoretical case is not a project, for it does not arise in 
a natural setting. The interne taking complete charge 
of a patient has exactly the same situation as does the 
practitioner. The more intimately the principles of 
diagnosis can be studied in connection with real cases, 
the more thoroughly the principles and technique of 
surgery can be learned in a natural setting, the more 
nearly will it approximate the true project method. 

If the clinic be used merely as a laboratory experi- 



178 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

ment to illustrate principles learned at some previous 
time, then it is not a project, but merely a demonstra- 
tion. 

The project method applied to medical education 
would carry with it the following suggestions : Before 
the student began the study of surgery, diagnosis, etc., 
he would have a junior interneship, in which he would 
observe operations and diagnosis. This method has 
a precedent in engineering education at Rensselaer.^ 
Before the students began the study of engineering 
they had, it will be remembered, an experimental term, 
gathering specimens and visiting shops and factories 
to get the setting for engineering and to see some of 
the problems at first hand. Paralleling this, the 
interne would study the processes involved in the 
operations, and the diagnosis. In other words, the 
problem in the cases presented would constitute the 
basis for the courses in surgery and medicine. Ob- 
viously, a large number of cases could not be observed 
or carried through but this could then be supplemented 
by a systematic study of cases not actually observed. 

At the present, this would cause a rearrangement of 
the courses given in the medical schools. It would 
mean that some parts of the courses would be given in 
the hospital. This may be difficult to realize but the 
principles underlying the method are sound. As a 
substitute for this, it is proposed that the medical 
school require the students to spend a junior interne- 
1 See pp. 158-159. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 179 

ship in a hospital between the second and third years, 
and between the third and fourth years, — two three- 
months periods. Opportunity to help in operations 
and diagnosis would be valuable and would raise prob- 
lems which would make the following years of study 
vital and real. It would be a very efficient method, if 
principles of diagnosis could be studied in connection 
with the real cases as they were presented for diagnosis 
in the hospital. This could be supplemented by a 
systematic study of diagnosis, to cover the cases which 
were not presented in the hospital. 

In summarizing, it would seem that the most that 
can be claimed for the legal clinic is that it is a very 
desirable element in legal training but cannot be relied 
upon to give a systematic training which is necessary ; 
unless more time is taken than can be seemingly justi- 
fied by the results. As a method to be supplemented 
with other methods it is highly desirable because it 
carries cases to completion and evaluates material. It 
demands and usually obtains a high degree of interest. 
In so far as the student actually carries the real case to 
completion just so far it approches a true project. 

The clinic has won its place in the medical profession. 
It is recognized as an indispensable element in medical 
training. The interneship is now regarded as a most 
desirable part of the course. If the clinic were made 
to include actual practice by the student and if the 
interneship were paralleled with a study of the prin- 
ciples underlying the cases they probably would be 



180 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

more effective. The clinic is usually an illustrative 
lesson or a demonstration and the interneship is gen- 
erally conducted as a practicum or as a laboratory 
exercise. The principles are all studied first and com- 
pleted, then the young doctor is placed in the hospital 
to try to apply all these principles at once. Unless 
exceptionally careful supervision is maintained, many 
serious mistakes will result. If, after studying part of 
the principles, he could have a short interneship in 
order to use those principles and develop other prin- 
ciples as needed in the case — of course under super- 
vision — the method would probably be far more 
efl&cient. The method would be improved if the 
student were asked to aid in taking care of the case 
and then were sent to the medical literature to deter- 
mine the principles, remedy, etc. In this way, the 
various cases would compel him to seek out the prin- 
ciples. This procedure would, of course, be supple- 
mented by a systematic training. 

To the extent that the interne develops principles 
as needed in the case under his partial care and carries 
the case to completion, to that extent the procedure 
approaches a true project. 

There must be recognized certain limitations of the 
project method in law and in medicine, for the state 
will not permit the student of law or of medicine to 
take complete charge of a case until after he has 
received a state's license to practice, which comes only 
after the completion of a systematic curriculum. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 181 

III. Journalism 

The ideas embodied in project teaching are incor- 
porated in the methods used by Harrington in the 
journaHsm courses given at the University of lUinois. 
This statement shows his attitude toward the ideas 
back of the project method : 

" It has become increasingly evident to many of 
us who have shared in this new movement that the 
most fruitful instruction in journalism is that which 
realistically duplicates the conditions of the newspaper 
office. Here is no make-believe, but the real thing. 
In other words, the project method which develops 
many journalistic principles as needed in a natural 
setting of work pleasantly pursued, has been proved 
best adapted to fulfilling the ends we have in view." ^ 

The atmosphere of a real newspaper office is faith- 
fully maintained. The reporters are given a room with 
typewriters, current newspapers, telephones, and all 
necessary facilities for obtaining copy. Even the 
amount of time which the reporters spend in the office 
is faithfully recorded. It should be borne in mind 
that this is not a laboratory but a real newspaper office, 
for the products of this room are to appear in the daily 
newspaper.^ 

^ Harrington, H. F., " Teaching Journalism in a Natural Setting. 
An Application of the Project Method." Educational Administration 
and Supervision, Vol. 5, pp. 198-199, April, 1919. 

2 " The output of our local room . . . reaches the eye of the pubhc, and 
satisfies a real need. There is no system of red-ink corrections left by 
a scrutinizing teacher; no themes written on assigned 'literary' topics, 



182 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Opportunities are given the students to do different 
types of work, in fact, eight or ten distinct duties are 
assigned to each pupil every week. They furnish the 
university news for the two down-town afternoon 
papers, the large part of the news for the campus daily 
and for the university " News-Bulletin," a clipping 
sheet of authentic news sent to a large list of Illinois 
newspapers. 

This method of teaching journalism well illustrates 
the project method. Principles of journalism are 
developed as needed by the student in carrying his 
story or his task to completion. The natural setting 
is present for the student has a waiting audience for 
his story, and he writes his story in a real newspaper 
office for a real newspaper. He writes now with the 
motive of conveying his story to his audience, not 
merely to the teacher for a school credit. The func- 
tional value of writing is thus realized. This method 
of teaching journalism develops interest, for a medium 
is furnished the reporters for their productions. 

The shortcoming of the project method in journalism 
is the failure to give a systematic view of the subjects. 
After principles have been developed as needed in their 
natural setting, it will be well to have a logical or 
systematic review of the principles in order to avoid 
any gap in the subject. It may be difficult to have 

productions which so often reach the waste basket. ' ' — Harrington, H. F. , 
" Teaching JournaHsm in a Natural Setting. An AppUcation of the 
Project Method." Educational Administration and Supervision, 
Vol. 5, p. 199. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 183 

every principle arise in its natural setting ; hence the 
necessity of the systematic view. 

IV. MoDEEN Language 

The direct method of modern language teaching 
incorporates most of the ideas of the project method. 
The aim of the direct method is to teach the modern 
language by imitation without much intervention of 
the mother tongue. 

Some of the arguments in favor of the direct method 
are : the interest of the students is greatly intensified 
and the grammar is studied inductively, that is, rules 
are discovered as the need arises. In fact, Handschin 
asserts that — 

" The direct method makes use of all that is valuable 
in the other methods, and thus may be considered an 
eclectic method which is eminently adapted to our 
modern education with its varied demands." ^ 

The advantages of the Gouin method, which forms 
an interesting preliminary to the direct method, are 
enumerated by the Committee of Twelve. 

" Out of the conviction that modern-language study 
should be made attractive, and out of the desire to 
adapt instruction to the known workings of the human 
mind, has come a system that seems more deserving 
of serious attention than the grammar method or the 
natural style of teaching. 

1 Handschin, Charles H., *' The Teaching of Modern Languages in 
the United States," p. 100. U. S. Bureau of Education, No. 510, 1913 . 



184 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" The Betis or Gouin method has the following ob- 
vious advantages : It trains the memory ; it fascinates 
the student and holds his attention more closely than 
any other mode of teaching now in vogue ; it gives the 
pupil, in a reasonably short time, a ready command 
over a large, well-arranged, and well-digested vocabu- 
lary ; it affords through some of its conversational 
groups, an insight into the life of a foreign country." ^ 

The direct method makes an effort to stage the prob- 
lems in their natural setting. The atmosphere of the 
foreign language is faithfully reproduced and con- 
versation is based upon the foreign language entirely. 
The desire to take part in the conversation spurs the 
student on to obtain control of the new language. The 
practice of having foreign language tables at the board- 
ing houses is another step toward realizing a natural 
setting for the language. 

An ideal project method of teaching the foreign lan- 
guage would be to take the class to the foreign country 
and then the real need for control of the new language 
would be made evident to the students. Our Ameri- 
can soldiers learned French by this method. The 
devices of direct method, foreign language tables, 
clubs, etc., represent an effort to approximate this 
same natural setting. 

The shortcomings of the direct method, vigorously 
pointed out by its opponents, are that it does not give 

1 Report of Committee of Twelve of the Modern Language Associa- 
tion of America, pp. 21-22. Published by D. C. Heath. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 185 

a systematic training in the grammar ; the pupils often 
are unable to write correctly, pronounce correctly, or 
translate correctly. It is interesting in this connection 
to quote from Krause, an advocate of the direct method, 
to show that he makes provision in the direct method 
for systematic training in reading, writing, and the 
grammar of the foreign language. 

" The direct method implies a direct appeal to the 
learner through the foreign language ; that is, it teaches 
the language, and not merely about the language, as is 
done by an indirect procedure. The aim of the reform 
method is : Reading ability developed by means of 
oral facility. In this wise both aspects of language, 
the literary and the spoken, are considered. To make 
my position perfectly clear, I shall enunciate once more 
the five cardinal points in the reform of modern lan- 
guage teaching, i.e., insistence upon good pronuncia- 
tion, and so-called realien. Could you, indeed, con- 
ceive of effective modern language instruction if the 
teachers were not to lay great stress upon accuracy of 
pronunciation; if they should not vitalize and vivify 
their teaching by work in speaking ; if they were not 
to bring their pupils into possession of usable gram- 
matical facts ; if their students could not read without 
translating ; and if the foreign nation, through a study 
of its literature, of its people, and its customs, were 
not to be brought into sympathetic view and apprecia- 
tion ? In short, not the dead letter but the living word 
must be placed in the foreground of modern language 
instruction." ^ 

1 Krause, Carl A., " The Direct Method in Modern Languages," 
pp. 101, 102 Charles Scribner's Sons, 1916. 



186 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The direct method develops great interest and ap- 
proaches the natural setting for the language. In this 
method, situations are so staged that the learners feel 
the need for control of the language and in obtaining 
this control the functional value of the language is 
realized. In so far as the method provides for carrying 
acts to completion in their natural setting it (method) 
approaches the project method. Provision must be 
made for a complete survey and systematic review of 
principles. 

V. Insurance Salesmanship 

The establishment of the School of Life Insurance 
Salesmanship at the Carnegie Institute of Technology 
is of interest not only to the insurance fraternity, but 
also to those concerned with the scientific study of edu- 
cation. The latter will be especially interested in the 
use made of scientific methods in the organization 
of the curriculum and in the methods employed in 
teaching. 

Since the objective of this school was so clear-cut, 
— "to train men and women to sell insurance," — the 
author's problem of curriculum organization was not 
difficult as compared with the problems facing edu- 
cators trying to organize curricula for elementary 
and high school courses, where the objectives are not so 
definite. 

Two general principles of curriculum organization 
were followed in this work : (1) Material that is used 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 187 

frequently by most of the insurance men in their 
daily work was considered necessary. This material 
was included in the course. The standard for the 
selection of material is based upon ^'frequency of use." 
(2) There are many situations which the salesman 
faces that require special knowledge and training. 
If he is not prepared for these situations, he either 
tries to handle them and makes mistakes or does not 
even try. Material which will help the salesman in 
this part of his work obviously must be included. 
Material included for these reasons is selected on the 
principle known as the "frequency of error." 

The experience and methods of successful insurance 
agents have been analyzed and used. Standard 
sources, including periodicals, sales bulletins, and text- 
books dealing with life insurance and life-insurance 
salesmanship, have been critically surveyed to make 
certain that the essential facts needed by the salesman 
have been incorporated in this course. Material 
which is not essential to the selling of life insurance 
has been rigorously eliminated. The final choice has 
been determined by making an analysis of the job to 
learn just what it is necessary to know and to do, to 
meet the job's requirement. Hence the course includes 
the facts, principles, and methods of life-insurance 
salesmanship which are needed by the successful 
salesman. 

After this material had been gathered and organized 
the problem of determining the method of instruc- 



188 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

tion was attacked. It seemed to the author that the 
project method, with some modification, would be the 
most effective. 

The true project method of teaching Hfe-insurance 
salesmanship would be to have the men and women 
begin by soliciting insurance. The difficulties and 
problems which they meet would constitute the prob- 
lem-material for the curriculum. From the author's 
point of view the true project method of teaching 
life-insurance salesmanship (beginning to sell at once) 
is probably the most effective, provided that the sales- 
man has plenty of time to learn, is carefully directed 
and taught after each day's work, and provided further 
that in this training period, the "prospects" and the 
service rendered them by inexperienced salesmen 
be disregarded. 

These objections are so significant that it seems 
necessary to effect a compromise method of instruction. 
The objections are similar to those in medicine and 
law. Clients, patients, and prospects alike, must 
be protected against malpractice. 

What is the compromise form of teaching proposed ? 
The students in this school are first taught the ele- 
mentary facts in the principles and functions of in- 
surance, and the principles and practical methods 
of life-insurance salesmanship. Sales talks are de- 
veloped based upon the insurance needs of the in- 
dividual. About the first half of the term is taken 
up with this study before the students actually solicit 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 189 

insurance. During the latter half of the school period, 
time is provided for actual selling practice. The diffi- 
culties and problems which are met by the students 
in the actual selling are then discussed in the school 
periods. 

This modified project method of teaching is justi- 
fiable because of the obligation to render service which 
the insurance fraternity owes to the clientele which it 
serves. 

The author firmly believes that law and medicine 
could be learned by starting men to practice without 
any knowledge of law or medicine and permitting them 
to practice and learn as they go, very much as men in 
the insurance business ordinarily learn their profession. 
Not many of us, even those advocating this method of 
training insurance salesmen, would be willing to have 
such doctors or lawyers practice on us. Again, the pro- 
tagonists of this method might maintain, policies are so 
well standardized that insurance men, whether trained 
or not, cannot do a serious injustice to their clients. 
The author recognizes that there is some merit in this 
statement and also that there are on the market stand- 
ardized medicines which are used widely by all phy- 
sicians. It is a fact, however, that most people would 
prefer to have their needs diagnosed by a trained 
physician before taking even standardized medicines. 

Insurance salesmanship cannot be taught by read- 
ing about insurance salesmanship, no matter how exten- 
sive the reading. To learn salesmanship the actual 



190 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

job of selling must be done. This actual selling has 
been provided for in the Carnegie School of Life In- 
surance Salesmanship, but provided for in a way which 
will protect the clients. 

It may be appropriate to state here that there are 
many interesting examples of the project method of 
teaching and curriculum organization among the 
projects carried out at the Carnegie Institute of 
Technology. 

The Department of Dramatic Arts is so organized 
as to give the student a general knowledge of the 
technique of the drama, approaching it by literary 
and historical courses, as well as through a severe train- 
ing in direct technical work. The students are re- 
quired to give public performances, and in carrying 
out these projects, they are required to give considera- 
tion to the making of scenery and costumes, dramatic 
literature, composition, music, and, in general, the com- 
plete work of production. The project here is the 
performance. The material of instruction consists 
of the facts, principles, and skills which are necessary 
to perfect this performance. 

Similar projects are carried out in other depart- 
ments of the Division of Arts. In the Division of 
Applied Psychology there are interesting uses of the 
project method in the work done by the Bureau of 
Personnel Research and the Bureau of Retail Selling. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT IDEA 191 

VI. Summary 

A brief survey of the literature dealing with the proj- 
ect idea in engineering, law, medicine, journalism, and 
the modern languages has been presented to show that 
the idea behind the term, as defined by the writer, is 
used with some modifications. The effort expended in 
all these fields has been to bring about a methodology 
which will tend to bridge the chasm between school 
tasks and activities outside the school. The project 
idea aims to present problems in situations not essen- 
tially different from those of life and to develop the 
technique of carrying the act to completion. 



CHAPTER Vin 

APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD TO SUBJECTS 
IN THE ELEMENTARY AND HIGH SCHOOLS 

The literature dealing with the teaching of en- 
gineering, law, medicine, journalism, agriculture, and 
the modern languages shows that the project idea is 
used with some modification in all these subjects. A 
survey of the teaching methods in the elementary and 
high school subjects will reveal the same tendency. 

This apparent uniformity of purpose, in accepting 
the same tendencies in methods of teaching, is no doubt 
due to an effort to develop a unit of teaching which 
will bridge the gap between school tasks and activities 
carried on outside the school. 

The history of engineering education shows that the 
first engineering college curriculums laid great emphasis 
on logically arranged abstract knowledge. The prin- 
ciples of engineering were abstracted, codified, and made 
available for instructional purposes. No particular 
effort was made to teach the principles of engineering 
in connection with their natural setting. Few labora- 
tories or factories were provided, and even the inspec- 
tion of plants by the engineering students was not a 
part of the course. The shortcomings of this method 
of curriculum organization were soon recognized and 

192 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 193 

there arose a demand for laboratories and plants ade- 
quately equipped, whereby students in the engineering 
courses might participate in actual engineering practice. 

The courses in the agricultural colleges were domi- 
nated at first by instructors who were intent on collecting 
and organizing a complete system of logically arranged 
facts. This material lacked concreteness and was not 
particularly related to the actual problems which the 
farmers faced. Schools of this character were severely 
criticized because they contributed little to farming 
practice. The curriculum was so organized that 
emphasis was placed on the acquisition of abstract sub- 
ject matter. It was not until the experimental farms, 
the experiment stations, the cooperative plan of farm- 
ing, and the home-project plan of teaching agriculture 
made their appearance in connection with the courses 
in agriculture that these agricultural colleges contrib- 
uted widely to the solution of the farmer^s problems. 

The study of law was confined in the beginning to 
the reading mastery of Blackstone. Later the law 
school course was carefully planned, and the material 
organized and incorporated in a college curriculum. 
This course was more elaborate than the material 
found in Blackstone. The criticism that was made of 
the graduates of this course was that they 
knew a great deal about law, but were unable to prac- 
tice successfully until after a few years of experience. 
In order to make the course meet more nearly the 
actual situation which the young lawyer would face, 



194 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

the case metliod, the moot and practice courts, and 
finally the legal clinic have been introduced. 

The medical schools have in turn faced the same prob- 
lem, with the result that laboratories, clinics, and interne- 
ships have been developed and provided in an effort to 
make some provision for actual experience or for the 
teaching of the subject matter in its natural setting. 

The emphasis which had been placed at first on the 
teaching of abstract subject matter in medicine, law, 
agriculture, and engineering, followed by plans to 
teach these subjects in their natural setting, has been 
described. This tendency has carried over into the 
fields of elementary and high school subject matter. 

The tendency to make the subject matter taught in 
schools abstract at first can probably be accounted for 
historically. In the early division of labor, the teach- 
ing was turned over to the men who were or who became 
the scholars. The teachers soon became absorbed in 
the development of subject matter and withdrew from 
active participation in the affairs of the community. 
In this atmosphere, sometimes quite aloof from com- 
munity life, the system of instruction was developed, 
with the result that the material was often taken out of 
its concrete setting, was abstracted, codified, and ar- 
ranged in systematic form for teaching. Hence, the 
natural setting for subject matter was soon forgotten 
or disregarded. 

This formal education carried on in the schools 
differed materially from that given in the home. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 195 

Education given first in the home was concrete. In- 
formation was acquired in its natural setting ; it was 
used to modify conduct ; it developed by meeting 
situations which arose for solution. Thinking out 
solutions was a very large part of this home learning. 
Schools carried on in the homes were informal ; hence, 
they afforded opportunity for individual work and 
expression — in other words, the socialized recitation, 
as we now describe this type of teaching situation, was 
utilized. The school was frequently carried on in 
connection with the home activities, and the subject 
matter grew out of the problems which arose for 
solution in daily life. 

After the school became separated from the home 
and was carried on at separate institutions with their 
teaching corps, the work became more formal and more 
abstract. The education furnished by these men who 
had lost contact with the world culminated in a system 
so unrelated to everyday affairs that to-day we are 
compelled to make an effort to formulate a method 
which will provide some of the good points of the in- 
struction which had been carried on in the home before 
the advent of formal education. We are trying to 
bring into the school more concrete subject matter. 

Criticism of the teaching in the schools has centered 
mainly around these four points : the teaching has 
emphasized learning through the memorizing of informa- 
tion, rather than through reasoning ; information has 
been acquired for its own sake, rather than as a means 



196 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

to modify conduct ; no special effort has been made 
to provide a natural setting for the learning; the 
learning has usually been realized through a mastery 
of principles logically arranged, rather than by develop- 
ing the principles as needed in the problematic situation. 

The project, defined as a problematic act carried to 
completion in its natural setting, provides for a unit 
of teaching which has for its aim the correction of these 
shortcomings. 

The teacher, in using the project method in any 
given field of subject matter, must determine first what 
the natural setting for the subject matter is. In other 
words, it is necessary at the outset to find out why people 
outside the school study or learn this subject matter. 

One of the first questions then to decide is : What 
is the natural setting for this unit of teaching or this 
subject? The material is taught in its natural setting 
in the school if it is taught for reasons not essentially 
different from those causing people outside the school 
to learn this subject matter. Once the teacher deter- 
mines the natural setting for the subject matter, it is 
essential to the project method that the same natural 
setting be provided in the school. The teacher must 
decide whether the material is learned by memorizing 
facts or by reasoning, and whether the learning is an 
end in itself or for the purpose of modifying conduct. 
It is an essential element in the project that the prob- 
lem be raised first — the principles being learned as 
needed in carrying forward the solution. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 197 

A number of projects taken from the elementary and 
high school fields will be cited to illustrate the way in 
which the project may be utiHzed as a unit of teaching. 

There has been no attempt on the writer's part to 
suggest a sufficiently large number of projects in any 
one given field of subject matter to teach the entire 
subject by the project method. The problem of organ- 
izing a whole curriculum on the project basis is quite 
outside the province of this book. The following proj- 
ects are cited for the specific purpose of showing how 
the project method may be utilized in any subject. 
The many projects cited in the preceding chapters 
may be reviewed in connection with this chapter, and 
since many references were made to agricultural proj- 
ects, no agricultural projects will be suggested in this 
chapter. The writer, however, wishes to call attention 
to R. W. Stimson's recent book, ^^ Vocational Agricul- 
tural Education by Home Projects," published by The 
Macmillan Company. This book is one of the most 
comprehensive treatments of any subject by the project 
method. 

The following projects, unless otherwise credited, 
were developed by experienced teachers who were 
students in the writer^s class during the summer of 1919 
at the University of Illinois. 

Projects in English 

Better English Week. — No plan has been more 
popular in the teaching of English composition than 



198 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

what is known as Better English Week. This can be 
made into a real " live ^' project. Certainly no one will 
question the statement that better expression written 
or oral is one of the chief aims of the teaching of English. 
The alert teacher must stage a situation where the 
pupils will see that they need to use better English. 
One teacher has made and used the following plan 
to arouse a desire for better expression among the 
pupils : 

About two or three weeks before Better English Week, 
she sent members of her class about the town to find out 
for themselves if business men put much value on good 
English. Some were sent to interview lawyers, mer- 
chants, and ministers. Others put the question to 
farmers, workmen on the street, to the mayor of the 
city, and so on, until they came in contact with many 
types of business and professional men. 

They were asked to bring back to class reports of 
their conversations word for word as far as possible. 
Some of the results plainly indicated that men 
who used good English and knew how to express 
themselves could carry on a logical conversation which 
could be repeated point by point in good style. Other 
pupils could report only a few incoherent sentences 
and say that they had tried to get the ideas or opinions of 
the person interviewed but that he did not seem able 
to express himself. The class agreed that the persons 
who used good English and expressed themselves 
clearly were always the most interesting to talk to, 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 199 

and in almost every case these persons were more 
successful in the business world than those who used 
poor English. 

When the class realized this fact they verified their re- 
sults still further. They wrote letters to a number of 
the most influential men in town and asked each one 
to make a list of qualifications which he thought 
essential for a young man or woman to have who 
wished to get on well in the business world. Nearly 
every one who responded included good expression in 
the list. Here was the place to introduce business 
letter writing. The pupils saw a need for it, were 
ready for it, and wanted it. The letters referred to 
above were written as a class exercise. 

After this investigation the members of the class saw 
that they must learn to express themselves well if they 
were to be successful. The class wished to start a cam- 
paign for better English. The work was turned over to 
the pupils. Clever posters and slogans were made in 
the art classes. These were placed in classrooms and 
corridors on the Friday before Better English Week. 

The members of the class jotted down every error 
in grammar that they detected in the classrooms or on 
the school grounds, made by either pupils or teachers. 
Every one was very careful during that week to 
avoid getting a " black mark." On Friday the reports 
were made and a record of the frequency of mistakes 
was put on the blackboard. This record showed that 
fewer errors were made during the latter part of the 



200 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

week. The most frequent errors were made in the use 
of forms of the verbs to go, to see, to do, and to be, 
and these were chosen by the class for drill work 
for the following week. The drill work followed with 
a great deal of enthusiasm. 

During this week the pupils began to cultivate 
the habit of observing their own English. This was 
followed by a drill on corrected forms. This exercise 
probably did more to improve their English than the 
same amount of time devoted to a formal study of rules 
and examples. The pupils were interested and pleased 
with the results. They asked to have another Better 
English Week the next fall. 

This procedure illustrates a project. The situation 
of correcting errors arose in its natural setting — the 
making of errors on the playground. The students 
proposed drill on correct forms and this was carried to 
completion. Information learned in this manner will 
modify conduct (their expression). 

A Project in Dramatization and Reading. — When 
some pupils in a grade school asked their teacher if 
they might give an entertainment just before Thanks- 
giving, they were told that if they would write their 
own play and present it their request would be granted. 

The next day in the English class the pupils talked 
over what they thought would be a good theme for 
their play and decided that, since it was to be a 
Thanksgiving entertainment, probably " The First 
Thanksgiving '' would be an appropriate theme. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 201 

Almost immediately one of the class who did much 
outside reading said that he knew where to find some- 
thing about the first Thanksgiving and gave the name 
of the book, which happened to be one of the supple- 
mentary readers used in the school. The selection 
was assigned for a reading lesson the next day. Others 
suggested the names of other readers that con- 
tained information on the subject and these stories 
were read later. This furnished opportunity for carry- 
ing on reading in its natural setting. Some brought 
books and magazines from home and read them to the 
class, or told the story to the class. 

When the class thought they had sufficient knowledge 
of the conditions and circumstances which led to the 
observance of the first Thanksgiving, they planned 
the writing of the play. All had some idea of what a 
play should be as they had read plays and presented 
them before. Different acts or scenes were decided 
upon, prominent characters were chosen, after which the 
real composition work was begun. 

By the time the play was completed, the class had 
decided on the members who should impersonate the 
different characters. A little girl, a favorite with the 
class, was chosen for Priscilla ; several Mexican boys 
wished to be the Indians ; John Alden was imperson- 
ated by a tall slender boy. Then came the choosing of 
the costumes, which led to some more reading and to the 
study of pictures. The Pilgrim hats were made in the 
construction period. Visits to the forestry supervisor 



202 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

were made to get permission to cut down some small 
pine trees for the stage. Thanksgiving songs were 
studied in the music period ; the play was memorized 
in the language study period and practiced in the read- 
ing period. A few days before Thanksgiving, written 
invitations were sent out by the pupils to the children 
of an upper grade asking them to be present at the 
entertainment. 

This project cut across the subjects of reading, 
language, and construction work. The motive to carry 
out this project arose with the members of the 
class. It was carried to completion in its natural 
setting. The play was originated and was given for 
reasons not essentially different from those which 
would have prompted the giving of a similar play 
outside the school. Many minor problems arose as 
the project progressed, which were solved by the 
members of the class. 

A Project in Letter Writing. — During the latter 
part of a recent school year, Madam Schumann-Heink 
gave a concert in a small city in Illinois. 

The prospect of her coming aroused great enthusiasm 
among the townspeople. The school children were 
especially interested since their music director used 
the event as a means of motivation in his depart- 
ment. 

On the morning of the date set for Schumann-Heink's 
appearance, the writer happened to be visiting in a 
fourth grade room. He asked the pupils whether they 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 203 

would like to write letters to the great singer. One 
may easily guess their reply : " It would make too many 
letters if every child in the system wrote one, wouldn't 
it?" 

" Then let each child in this room write a letter, 
have the best one selected by a committee of teachers, 
attach the signatures of the other 2200 children in the 
system, and send it to Madam Schumann-Heink by 
messenger." So the project was carried out. 

Was this motivated exercise in letter writing really 
a project? Is it possible that the subject of letter 
writing, which unites the arts of penmanship and com- 
position, can be taught by the 'project method or must 
this new method be limited to the manual, agricultural, 
and domestic arts? Is it possible that children 
of the fourth grade may do profitable work when 
their work is thrown into its ^^ natural setting," or 
must we hope for an application of this method in the 
upper grades and high school only? The writer will 
attempt to answer these questions and similar ones 
that might arise, as follows : 

The project implies an act carried to completion 
as against the passive absorption of information. 

Before the children began to write the letters they 
were given no information ; the task consisted only 
of an act carried to completion — the letters were 
written and one of the letters was sent to the ad- 
dressee. 

The exercise in question developed the problematic 



204 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

situation demanding reasoning rather than merely the 
memorizing of information. 

This was a problematic situation in that it was one 
involving reflection, and it called into Hfe the 
memorized information of the pupils by showing them 
a social use for it. 

By emphasizing the problematic aspect the priority 
of the problem over the statement of principles is im- 
plied. 

Thus the exercise paved the way for the restatement of 
principles already learned and gave a strong reason 
for learning more about letter writing. 

The exercise made provision for the natural setting 
of problems rather than an artificial setting. 

The schoolroom is as natural a setting for letter writ- 
ing as any other ; witness the surreptitious letters writ- 
ten by older pupils and teachers in this setting. The 
school is frequently a more natural setting for letter 
writing than the home. 

What Poems Written during the Great War Will Live ? ^ 
— The project of collecting poems of the Great 
War originated in a desire to have informal 
recitations, to cultivate home reading, to stimulate a 
love for poetry, and to form a connecting Hnk between 
the school and the home. 

War and anything related to it held the center of 
the stage in the autumn of 1918. The literature of the 

1 A project developed and reported by Mrs. Mary M. Pierce, teacher 
of the sixth grade, Henry Freeman School, Rockford, Illinois. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 205 

war, particularly the poetry^ was read by all. Some of 
the collections were worth while, others were not. The 
class decided to make its own collection. 

The children were asked to read several poems and 
bring their favorites to class. They brought in several 
score, which were read to the class with comments. 
Some were read many times. The class measured 
every selection by two rules : Has it enduring thought ? 
Is it well expressed ? In order to carry on this sifting 
process, the class was divided into groups, each group 
with a leader, for the purpose of reading, comparing, 
and discussing the poems. Each poem which went in- 
to the final collection was voted on by the class. 

We found in this work abundant opportunity to 
discuss such topics as the brotherhood of man 
as exemplified in the war, and as a strong factor in 
modern civic and industrial life ; the worth of true 
manhood in every walk of life ; sacrifice for country ; 
honor of flag ; citizenship ; woman suffrage ; and other 
related topics. 

This final collection of poems was printed as a 
booklet and these books have gone into the homes and 
have been read by the children's families. 

Following this work of selection and the printing of 
the material, the pupils spent a few months in 
reading some of the world's standard poetry, selections 
from Whitman, the Carys, Wordsworth, and Long- 
fellow. The results showed that this project developed 
in them a love and an appreciation for the standard 
selections. 

Projects in Civics 

A Project in Community Civics. — This project 
is a rather comprehensive one, and in working out the 



206 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

details it will require much thought and time, but it 
represents a contemplated plan to be carried out within 
the school year as a basis for an eighteen-weeks 
course in Community Civics in a community with a 
population of a himdred thousand. The whole proj- 
ect includes the preparation of a pamphlet in- 
tended to develop, by actual investigation on 
the part of eighth and ninth grade pupils, three 
sets of facts about the city in which they live : 
(1) What is the existing state of civic affairs in my 
city? (2) How does this compare with that of 
other cities of similar size and industrial conditions? 
(3) What needs to be done in "my generation'' 
(meaning the pupil's period of service as a citizen just 
beginning) to make it the best possible city of its 
size? 

The whole preparation of a summary of this kind 
could not be done, perhaps, in less than three or four 
years, if worked upon by pupils all over the city. To 
make concrete one year's work as a beginning, the 
best plan is to have the pupils prepare a survey of the 
civic life of the section of the city in which the school 
is located, presenting facts regarding the labor condi- 
tions, the recreational facilities, the transportation 
facilities, and health conditions. In eighteen weeks 
the pupils should be able to examine these four 
problems for their district as a work in civics and to 
embody the results ip. a pamphlet. 

How Can We Best Americanize Foreign People in 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 207 

Rockford f^ — A few months ago, in our history class at 
the Blake School, we were discussing the causes operat- 
ing against the Americanization of the recent immigrant 
population in our country. We discussed the plans 
utilized by the national government to assimilate this 
great foreign element. A long, interesting discussion, 
centering around the living conditions and character- 
istics of our foreign group, followed. 

From a study of the national problem of immigra- 
tion and its influence on national life, the class brought 
up the question of the influence of immigration on the 
problems of city life. The question of what the nation 
was doing to assimilate the foreign element brought the 
class face to face with this local problem : " What can 
Rockford do to Americanize its foreign people ? " 

In order to accumulate material bearing on 
the problem and to have a general working knowl- 
edge of the distribution of the foreign element in 
our city, two boys offered to serve on a committee of 
investigation and to make a general survey of our alien 
population and their problems. By consulting the 
heads of churches, the school census, and naturaliza- 
tion courts they found that our problem concerned 
more the peoples from southern Europe ; indeed, in our 
own district, approximately thirty- two per cent of the 
children represented homes in which one or both of the 
parents were immigrants from this section. We tried to 

1 A project developed by Laura E. Ryan, teacher of the seventh 
grade, Blake School, Rockford, Illinois. 



208 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

find out not only why they came to America; but 
some of the problems that they had to meet. The 
library was a great help in securing information and, 
as each child brought before the class the results of his 
reading, we acquired a great deal of information bear- 
ing on the subject. 

The Italians, Greeks, Lithuanians, and other foreign 
children in our midst furnished additional information. 
One little Lithuanian boy, scarcely ten years old, on 
being asked why his father came to America; wrote : 
" My father was born in Russia. When he was a 
little boy the Czar would not let people get an educa- 
tion. We had some cousins in America. They wrote 
to him. They said there was a good government here. 
So he came and worked in a coal mine in central 
Illinois. At night he went to night school and took 
out his citizenship papers. He would not go back to 
Russia for anything. He has a lifetime job.'^ Another 
girl born in Italy gave us some valuable information 
in regard to the characteristics of the Italian race and 
of the way the foreign-born child is Americanized in 
the public school by coming in touch with American Hfe. 

This study of the characteristics of our foreign 
population created a desire on the part of the boys and 
girls to learn more. The resources of the public library 
were then drawn upon. Each child was urged to 
carry a notebook and to jot down interesting things 
bearing on our problem. It was a source of great 
satisfaction to me to find them so enthusiastic over the 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 209 

books that they were reading, — " The Immigrant 
and the Community," by Abbott ; " The Promised 
Land/' by Mary Antin ; and the " Making of an 
American," by Jacob Riis. Various articles bearing 
on the problem from some of our leading magazines 
were brought into class for discussion. We found 
articles in the Literary Digest and similar publications, 
and the Americanization pamphlets published by the 
Department of the Interior very helpful. 

We next made an inventory of all the agencies in 
the city that might help to bring about an early 
assimilation of these people who in most cases are 
eager to learn but have never had the opportunity. 
On enumerating the forces, the public library, evening 
schools, factories, social centers, Chamber of Com- 
merce, churches, moving pictures, kindergartens, 
and newspapers were all mentioned. The pur- 
pose was to endeavor to inspire the foreign people of 
our neighborhood, through their children, with the 
spirit of American ideals and American citizenship. 
Believing that the most important service the Ameri- 
canization worker can give to the foreign-born is to 
personify the best that America has to offer these 
children, the future citizens of Rockford were shown 
that it was their duty and obligation, by living up to 
the highest ideals, to make the immigrants' absorption 
into citizenship possible. As one of the strongest 
bonds of Americanism is unity of language, it became 
the aim of the child to speak the English language in 



210 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

the home, that the parents might learn the duties and 
obHgations of Americans. 

Our class numbered twenty-two children. We di- 
vided it into committees of two to interview the heads 
of the social welfare organizations, in order to find 
out what they were doing and planning to do. In 
nearly every case the committees met with ready 
response and received many helpful suggestions. 
Through their investigations the pupils had already 
become acquainted with many city officials. Through- 
out our entire study of the projects concerning com- 
munity welfare there was constant interest and a keen 
desire to know more. I should like to quote here the 
report brought in by the two girls who visited the 
Social Settlement to find out the nature of the work 
they were doing : 

" On Saturday afternoon we paid a visit to the two 
social centers, and found each engaged in doing a valu- 
able work. The Montague House under the supervi- 
sion of the Rockford Woman^s Club, and St. Elizabeth's 
under the Catholic Woman's League, through their 
work with the little children in the kindergarten and 
the mother in the home, have accomplished great good. 
These people at the settlement are surely doing their 
part in the assimilation of the foreign homes. They 
also told us that every woman in the Rockford Woman's 
Club had planned to make friends with at least one 
foreign-born resident and work for American standards 
of living. While we were at these centers we had a 
chance to see the little foreign children at work. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 211 

The woman in charge urged us to tell all the little 
foreign children in our midst about the social center." 

This research work carried on by the children had 
an important bearing on our subject. Our next step 
was to get in touch with what other cities were doing, 
to find what standard had been attained in other 
communities. Each child wrote a letter to the Cham- 
ber of Commerce of some city interested in the work 
of Americanization, the problems of which were similar 
to our own. Here is a sample of one of the letters sent 
by one of the children to the Chamber of Commerce 

of Cleveland : 

Rockford, Illinois, 
April 9th, 1919. 
Chamber of Commerce, 

Cleveland, Ohio. 
Dear Sirs : 

Our history class at Blake School in Rockford is trying to 

get in touch with what other cities are doing in the way of 

Americanization. We heard that Cleveland had been carrying 

on the work for several years. Would you kindly give us some 

suggestions ? 

Yours very truly. 

In a few days this little girl was very much pleased to 
receive a reply from the Cleveland Chamber of Com- 
merce telling of Cleveland's method of Americanization. 
The books we received from Cleveland were very help- 
ful. The work there seemed to center around two 
divisions : first, bringing the foreign-born home into 
closer touch with the language, customs, and ideals of 



212 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

America ; and second, giving to the native-born Ameri- 
can an understanding of the racial and pohtical sym- 
pathies of the foreign-born. Other cities sent helpful 
information. In this way each child had a chance to 
become personally acquainted with the social service 
work in other cities and brought much valuable infor- 
mation to the class. 

After this discussion the question naturally arises 
as to what this study of Americanization will lead. 
What value will it bring to the individual child? 
So far I have attempted to show you that, in the 
solution of our problem, subject matter was developed, 
the work was motivated, and that research work 
was carried on by the children. I shall try to show 
the definite outcome of the problem and its value as 
a training in citizenship and practical efficiency. 

The class, as a direct result of our project, has 
formed an Americanization Club for the purpose of 
getting better acquainted with the people of the 
neighborhood. This club was very fortunate in secur- 
ing the chairman of the Americanization Committee of 
the Daughters of the American Revolution to speak 
at one of the meetings. She not only talked to the 
class on the local problems, but brought great inspira- 
tion and help by inviting the class to witness the 
impressive ceremony of conferring final citizenship on 
fifty aliens. Many members of the class were present 
and felt, after witnessing the naturalization ceremony, a 
greater desire not only to urge the taking out of citizen- 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 213 

ship papers^ but to have some share in the Americaniza- 
tion of the new citizens. 

These boys and girls have acquired first-hand 
knowledge of some of the life conditions of our city. 
Their investigations have brought the right attitudes 
towards life. All the boys and girls have a greater 
interest in public problems, have a desire to read more 
along these lines, are filled with a desire to serve. I 
shall feel that the social aims for which it was intended, 
good citizenship and practical efficiency, have been 
attained if, in their Americanization Club, they will 
endeavor to continue the good work by helping to 
arouse public opinion and by keeping in touch with 
the best efforts of other communities. This working 
together is one of the best influences for good citizen- 
ship. The mutual understanding and appreciation of 
the foreigner in our midst cannot help being of 
benefit to the community in which we live. This 
problem led to social service by showing the children 
how they might cooperate, not only to bring about 
better conditions in their own city, but to further the 
.high spirit of good citizenship — the goal of education. 

If through the study of Americanization the class 
become interested in other community problems, if 
they realize the necessity for really Americanizing the 
foreigners in our midst, they will be ready in the 
years to come to vote intelligently and to do their part 
in furthering the growth of democracy and democratic 
ideas of government. 



214 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Another Project in Community Civics. — The follow- 
ing account of a school experience furnishes an excel- 
lent example of a project in civics. 

The high school had no playground readily accessible. 
A vacant lot adjoining the school campus was all that 
the boys had for a playground. The lot passed into 
the hands of a man who was not interested in boys. 
He posted " Keep out " signs at every corner and in- 
formed the principal that the boys were to play on the 
lot no more. The next day the signs were all gone and 
the boys went to play as before. 

The boys were taken to task by the principal. 
They maintained that they were not injuring the lot 
and that they ought to be allowed to play on it. The 
principal agreed with them in that contention, but 
showed them that they were going about the matter 
in the wrong manner. He suggested that the boys 
petition the board to buy the lot for a playground. 
The boys readily fell in with the suggestion. It was 
decided that it would be wise to consult the owner 
first to see for what price he would sell the lot. A 
committee waited upon the owner and succeeded in 
getting from him even better terms than they had 
hoped for. They then went to the Board of Educa- 
tion with a proposition, and, by dint of good manage- 
ment and good luck, accomplished their purpose. The 
whole situation was carried through in such a way 
that the boys came to have a higher respect for law 
and order than before, and to know more about the 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 215 

ins and outs of business. This situation was referred 
to from time to time in the civics class.^ 

Peojects in Hygiene 

Anti'Fly Campaign. — I have not personally carried 
this project to completion in my own school work. 
Once, while teaching a high school class in physiology, 
I did some of the preliminary work, but, through 
inability or ignorance of the technique of project 
teaching, I was unable to complete the unit. The 
identical project was carried out by Mr. J. L. Pricer 
in his normal school classes in biology at the Illinois 
State Normal University. While I am not indebted 
to Mr. Pricer for the idea, the project as reported here 
is essentially as he carried it out, and his experience, as 
I have heard him relate it, together with my own 
observation of the work, is evidence that the plan is 
workable and worth while from the standpoint of (l) 
immediate results, (2) interest on the part of students, 
and (3) information in biology derived by the students. 

A project of this nature cuts across several subjects 
in the curriculum and might for this reason be under- 
taken with profit in any of these courses, or perhaps 
best in all of them, if the cooperation of the several 
teachers can be secured. If the project arises in 

1 Attention should be called to two bulletins " The Teaching of 
Community Civics" and "Civic Education in Elementary Schools as 
Illustrated in IndianapoHs " published by the U. S. Bureau of Education. 
There are many suggested projects in community civics outUned in 
these bulletins. 



216 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

biology, the biology teacher will, in summing up the 
work at the close of the course, emphasize the prin- 
ciples that apply to his field. The project might arise 
in a course in hygiene, in which case the principles 
emphasized will be slightly different. It is conceivable 
that the identical project could arise in journalism, 
physiology, domestic science, or even in manual train- 
ing. It seems to me that it belongs primarily to com- 
munity civics in the discussion of public health. In 
its various ramifications it should utilize material from 
other subjects suitable to the purpose. It will in this 
way illustrate clearly the complexity of many prob- 
lems in social science. 

The plan of the fly campaign, the slogan of which 
was " Make Normal a Flyless Town,'' occurred to 
Mr. Pricer as a means of vitalizing the work in his 
biology classes. He knew the life history of the fly 
and its common breeding places, also the means of 
preventing breeding. With this knowledge he believed 
he had a real message. This he gave to his classes and 
he said " they appeared to understand." He therefore 
expected great results when these students went out 
into teaching. But years went by and no such results 
appeared. He therefore reviewed his work to find out 
what was the matter, and concluded that his students 
discounted his teaching, since he himself had not 
accomplished such results. He then laid the plans to 
make the community flyless. 

The work started in the normal school classes during 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 217 

the winter term. The students were instructed as to 
the facts about flies in view of the coming campaign. 
The plan was appropriately advertised among the 
students and faculty members likely to be called upon 
for any part of the work. Since it was conceived that 
the cooperation of the children would be advantageous, 
the plan was presented in the training school by the 
student teachers. It was considered important that 
no one should engage in the propaganda work who did 
not himself understand the problem. 

It so happened that Normal at this time possessed 
a unique weekly newspaper, supported entirely by ad- 
vertising and delivered free of charge to every house 
in town, — a "free lance '* publication which could 
take up any policy without fear of offending subscribers. 
The cooperation of the editor was secured and numer- 
ous short paragraphs and articles on flies were inserted 
with the news. As everybody in town read the 
" Normahte/' everybody soon knew of the campaign. 

As a further assurance that every one should know 
and understand the plan, the students divided the 
town into districts and to each district an individual 
was assigned to make a sanitary survey. In so far as 
possible the more diplomatic of the students were 
chosen for this work. The student made a call at 
each home in his district. He announced the purpose 
of his call in the interest of the fly campaign and further 
explained the plan. He then volunteered to assist the 
householder by looking over his premises and pointing 



218 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

out the places that needed cleaning. It had been 
previously arranged with the University farm manage- 
ment to supply wagons to haul away all manure placed 
on the alleys, as it could be used on the farm, and the 
city authorities provided means of hauling away all 
tin cans, bottles, and other rubbish. The student, if 
necessary, emphasized the fact that everybody else 
was joining in the campaign and that premises might 
be listed as sources of infection in case they were 
not cleaned up. If the householder absolutely refused 
to have anything to do with the plan, the place was 
surveyed at safe distance in spite of this refusal and 
the conditions noted were thus made a matter of 
record at headquarters. Business houses were Uke- 
wise interviewed. 

At about this time a Congressman from the dis- 
trict, hearing of the campaign, wrote Mr. Pricer of 
certain government publications and volunteered to 
send them to every home in town if the addresses could 
be supplied. Mr. Pricer supplied him with a telephone 
book and each subscriber received the literature. 

When spring opened, a clean-up week was desig- 
nated. The wagons were at hand and kept busy. 
Incidentally, the University farm received a great deal 
of free fertilizer. As it was found unsafe to allow 
manure to accumulate for more than a week, trips were 
made weekly by the wagons and the manure was 
scattered on the cornfields, where, exposed to sun- 
light, it no longer formed a breeding place. A few 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 219 

people who at first refused to cooperate, seeing the 
advantages of the campaign, were glad to come in. 
By the end of the summer, only one man was known to 
oppose the work, and this because he had some pigs 
and did not see how they could be kept clean. 

A difficulty was experienced at the University dairy 
barn where flies persisted in spite of many traps and 
the weekly cleanings. But it was determined that 
the University should not be the " slacker,' ' so clean- 
ings were made daily. This also added to the assur- 
ance of clean milk from that dairy. 

A problem remaining unsolved, according to Mr. 
Pricer, was that of the vacant-lot cow pasture, a few 
of which existed in and near the town. A special 
study of this problem was made by the students. It 
was noted that the usual cow fly differs somewhat 
from the common house fly, but to all appearance it 
is equally capable of carrying disease. An experiment 
was performed in one of these cow pastures by placing 
a wire cage over a pile of droppings that had been 
exposed to flies. After flies had hatched, the cage was 
removed and the contents scalded. More than four 
hundred flies were counted. The most feasible solu- 
tion of this problem was found to be that of having a 
brood of chickens or a few pigs follow the cows. By 
working in the manure they scattered it, and by ex- 
posing it to sunlight prevented much of the breeding. 

An interesting problem developed in the calculation 
of the distance that an adult fly travels from the breed- 



220 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

ing place. Horseflies have been observed to travel 
long distances while following the animals. It was 
concluded, however, that the distance traveled by the 
house fly was comparatively short since the town of 
Normal borders on Bloomington, where similar pre- 
cautions were not taken, yet this fact did not materi- 
ally affect the success of the Normal project. 

Correlated with the work of the fly, the normal 
school classes studied other insects and the interest ran 
high. The problem of insects as disease carriers was 
easily covered and the principles of entomology were 
amply illustrated. The results were evident. The 
principles learned were summarized in the classes, their 
relations to life problems being evident. 

As stated at the beginning of this paper, we believe 
that this project arises most naturally in community 
civics. The civics teacher will emphasize different 
principles : the nature of the organization, coopera- 
tion, the influence of the press, and other similar 
features. Biological facts will receive attention only 
when a knowledge of them is necessary to accomplish 
the purposes of the work. The various points of 
contact of the social sciences are, by definition, as 
varied as the experiences of life itself. No clearer 
illustration of this could be found than by taking 
such a project and carrying it to completion. 

Prevention of Communicable Disease. — The routine 
of school procedure frequently calls for instruction in 
health matters when the need is only potential.^ As a 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 221 

result, when the situation arises the facts memorized 
are either forgotten or fail through lack of initial mo- 
tivation to carry over into action. It is a common 
spectacle to find the individual who has received such 
instruction helpless in the face of a real situation. 
There may be few instances in which disease problems 
may be studied at first hand, yet it seems to the 
writer that the following opportunity is so evident 
that it should not be overlooked by the wide-awake 
schoolmaster. 

It is a matter of common observation that an epi- 
demic of some sort occurs among school children prac- 
tically every year. This may be made the basis of a 
project in public health. 

Assume that the epidemic, or threatened epidemic, 
is the very common one of measles. This is a highly 
contagious disease affecting children primarily, and is 
responsible for a goodly proportion of the child mor- 
tality as well as for numerous more or less serious 
after-effects. The epidemic commonly starts by single 
cases. This is the time for activity on the part of 
the school authorities, who may frequently prevent 
much suffering by prompt action. The children of the 
school may be organized for a project, the result of 
which will be that the facts of prevention, treatment, 
and final disinfection will be forcibly impressed on their 
minds. 

When the first case of measles appears, the sanitary 
facts relative to the disease should be taken up in the 



222 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

school classes and explained to the children in simple 
language. When the children understand in part the 
nature of the disease they may, through a committee, 
call upon the health officer and offer their services in 
preventing the spread of the disease. It would be a 
foolish health officer who would refuse an offer of this 
value. 

The tactful teacher will see to it by previous con- 
ference with the health officer that he has at hand the 
pamphlets issued by the state department of health 
relative to measles. These give, for the informa- 
tion of the public, the legal provisions and also facts 
that will be of use in controlling the disease. The 
health officer could, at this time, express his appre- 
ciation of the offer and explain to the children some 
medical facts that will assist them in avoiding the 
disease. The nature and necessity of quarantine will 
be clearly understood and the whole-hearted support 
of the children will assure the carrying out of its pro- 
visions. This literature may be used as the basis of 
the physiology recitations until the children under- 
stand it. The children should be pledged not to vio- 
late the provisions of the quarantine nor the provisions 
of the law in case any one of them contracts the disease. 
They will be cautioned as to the dangers arising from 
failure to heed the precautions pointed out by the 
state board of health in its literature. Through the 
children, parents may learn of their part in preventing 
the spread of the disease and difficulties need not 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 223 

arise in connection with failure to obey the law because 
it was not understood. 

As the occasion may not be propitious to study all 
communicable diseases in this way, this will be a fitting 
time to make a general summary on contagious diseases. 
A suggested outline for the study of each disease is as 
follows : 

I. Source of infection. 
II. Agents of infection. 

a. Contact, h. Droplets, c. Water, d. Milk. 
e. Air. /. Other agents. 

III. Conditions favoring infection. 

IV. Care of the patient. 
V. Precautions. 

a. Quarantine, h. Disinfection, c. When to 
call the physician, d. Final disinfection. 
VI. Duration of the disease. 

A summary on communicable diseases issued by the 
United States Public Health Service may be used at 
this time and left with the pupils for future reference. 

An Anti-Sneeze Campaign} — " Just after the 
Christmas holidays, school attendance was seriously 
interfered with by an epidemic of severe colds, grip, 
and similar respiratory diseases. Nor were pupils 
in school the only sufferers. Probably seventy-five 
per cent of the people were incapacitated for or 
seriously handicapped in their regular occupations by 

^Project developed by Mae Creswell, Supervising Critic, Iowa 
State Teachers' College. Edited by C. W. Stone, Iowa State Teachers' 
College. 



224 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

these maladies. The basis for this statement is reports 
from the homes given by pupils in the school. Pneu- 
monia claimed many elderly people for its victims. 
And this community was not alone in its suffering. 
' The grip ' became a matter of serious concern from 
New York to the Pacific. 

^^ Since boys and girls as well as grown people were 
instrumental in spreading the disease, it was deemed 
advisable to devote some time in school to the study of 
the means of avoiding the increase of the contagion. 
The work was known as the Anti-Sneeze Campaign. 
Certain phases of the study were taken up in each 
grade. 

'^ The usual procedure was a discussion led by the 
teacher. Then the pupils made further use of the 
information gained, in language or composition and 
drawing. First the census of the prevalence of the 
disease was taken. The following furnishes an ex- 
ample of the lesson for the fifth grade : 

" ^ There are many, many tiny plants in the world, 
so tiny that if we look at them with a microscope that 
makes them from 300 to 500 times as large as they 
really are, they look then only specks. They are 
of many shapes, some rodlike, some round, some cork- 
screw-shaped, and so clear as to resemble a tiny bit of 
gelatine. Nor are they green at all as you expect 
plants to be. They are called bacteria. Some of them 
are useful, as the ones that our mothers or the bakers 
put in our bread to make it rise. Another kind causes 
milk to sour ; another causes waste substances to be 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 225 

broken up, decay we say, so other plants can again use 
the material. A few kinds are harmful and are known 
as disease germs. One kind causes grip, another diph- 
theria, another tonsilitis, while pneumonia and abscesses 
in the eai are caused by other germs. Many other 
diseases that we call contagious are due to germs. 

" ' These germs increase very rapidly when they have 
proper conditions. You remember how soon the bread 
rises after the yeast is put in it. One tiny plant 
may become fifty or even a hundred in an hour's time. 
Disease germs need to be kept at body temperature and 
require body tissue for food. Sunshine is fatal to them, 
hence they find the inside of our noses, throats, and lungs 
well suited to their development. Enlarged tonsils 
and adenoid growths make such good places for these 
germs to grow that doctors are anxious to have the 
adenoids removed and often the tonsils. 

" ^ A healthy nose and throat is warm enough and 
moist enough for the germs to grow, but their food is 
lacking. Just let us take cold by leaving off our rub- 
bers some sloppy day or in some other way, and the 
blood rushes from our skin, hands, and feet and clogs 
the blood tubes in our noses and throats. The delicate 
linings of the nose and throat become swollen, very 
red, and an abundance of mucus is secreted. We say, 
^^ My nose runs.'' These red swollen linings form good 
places to grow colonies of disease germs. A few germs 
come floating along in the air we breathe and finding 
so good a place to grow lose no time in getting to 
work. Within twenty-four hours we may be suffering 
with tonsilitis, gasping for breath with diphtheria or 
pneumonia, or nearly wild with earache. All of these 
germs give off a poison which enters our bodies and 
makes us feel sick all over. 



226 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

" ' Mother Nature tries to get rid of anything in our 
throats by having us cough. Or if the trouble is in 
the nose, the air is driven out through the nose and 
we sneeze. There is no sneeze unless there is some- 
thing irritating those delicate linings of the nose. If 
there are colonies of germs growing in the nose, a 
sneeze is bound to carry some of them out. Just in 
the same way is the air coughed out laden with them. 
Not every cough or sneeze carries disease germs but 
probably ninety-nine out of every hundred do.' 

^' The pupils then were able to carry on the lesson by 
suggesting how to care for the sneeze and coughs. 
Some of the commonest statements were, ' Do not 
sneeze.' ^ Turn away your head when you sneeze or 
cough.' ' Cover your nose with your handkerchief 
when you must sneeze.' ' Have a clean handkerchief 
every day, oftener if you have a cold.' ^ Keep your 
handkerchief in your pocket when not using it. Do 
not wave it about.' ' Be careful not to take cold, 
then the germs can't grow.' 

" The grades from fourth to high school worked out 
'Safety First' rules during their language period. All 
endeavored to make their epigrams real danger signals. 
Khymes were used effectively. The high school pupils 
wrote on the most effective means of presenting the 
dangers of promiscuous sneezing and coughing to 
the general public. The results of their work suggested 
many unique means of advertising. Local papers 
expressed a willingness to publish some of the best 
ones. The seventh grade have lettering in their draw- 



APPLICATION OP THE PROJECT METHOD 227 

ing work and they made some of the epigrams into 
effective posters. Other grades planned ^Safety First ^ 
posters to be placed in conspicuous places around the 
school building. 

"The following were chosen from the fifth, sixth, 
seventh, and eighth grades : 

" ' Run away from the sneezers if you want to keep 
well.' 

" ^ Dangerous germs are scattered by a cough or a 
sneeze.' 

" ' Kershoo ! A thousand grip germs fly in the air.' 

" ' Always cover your nose and mouth with your 
handkerchief before sneezing.' 

" ' If you are a Ger(m)man go a Russian to the doc- 
tor,' 

" ' Are you prepared ? A handkerchief in nick of 
time 

Will save your precious health and mine.' " ^ 

Projects in Geography 

Beginning Map Study. — The lesson is begun by 
arousing the pupil's interest in, and demonstrating a 
need for, the subject to be studied. The teacher asks, 
" Bobby, does little Donald who lives across the street 

^Editor's Note. — As Miss Cresswell shows in this article, even 
an ill may be turned to considerable good. As is evident in this 
account, pupils study health problems — as other problems — most 
vigorously and effectively when impelled by a felt need. Under such 
circumstances pupils readily join the teacher in the study required to 
satisfy the need ; and the teacher is thereby freed from the all too com- 
mon " bugbear" of making the work interesting. It is interesting 
because it is what it is, and is being studied when it is. C. W. S. 



228 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

from you come to our school? '^ Bobby says, " No/' 
and the teacher immediately asks, " Why not ? " Well, 
Bobby probably does not know, so you ask, " Frank, 
does James who lives across the street from you come to 
our school? " He answers, " Yes,'' and so the ques- 
tion immediately comes, " Why does James come to our 
school and not Donald?" Some one will probably 
answer, " Because Donald does not live in our school 
district." 

The teacher then asks the pupils if they would like 
to know something about the size and shape of our 
school district. It is then suggested that a picture of 
it be made on the sand table. The interest is now 
aroused and the pupils proceed with their work. Soon 
various questions arise, such as : Are the blocks square ? 
Are all the blocks exactly the same size? Where is 
north, south, east, and west ? How large can we make 
the blocks to have room for all the blocks on our sand 
table? 

Later the streets are named and each child locates 
his own home. A piece of chalk or wood may be 
used to represent a house. All important buildings, 
such as stores and churches, may be located and repre- 
sented in any way the children may choose. This is 
then reproduced as a map on the blackboard ; at this 
point the problem of the scale- is taken up. 

Teaching Longitude and Time. — The following de- 
scription of a project illustrates how well seasonable 
topics may be utilized. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 229 

In November, 1918, a seventh grade class began 
the study of " Longitude and Time/' a very short 
time after the armistice had been signed. The local 
newspaper contained the statement that the armistice 
was signed the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th 
month. // this statement were true, at what time 
should the bells proclaiming the signing of the armis- 
tice have rung in Urbana? How would you account 
for the fact that the bells rang before this time ? 

Pupils were so anxious to recite that they could 
hardly stay in their seats. They all wanted to talk 
at once ; so they were all given ten minutes to write 
their solutions on paper. For once, they wished to 
write, for they had something to say. 

Then one girl raised her hand and said, " I have a 
solution of this problem, and I'd like to challenge the 
rest of the class to find any flaw in my arguments.'' 
Of course the class accepted her challenge ; and as she 
stood before the class the next thirty minutes arguing 
with her schoolmates, no football game could have 
been more exciting. 

What Part Has Transportation Played in the Develop- 
ment of Our Country ? ^ 

The aims of this lesson were : 

To produce in the minds of the pupils an apprecia- 
tion of the value of transportation in the development 

1 This project was reported by Miss Margaret Long, of Rockford, 
Illinois. 



230 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

not only of our own people and country but also of 
other nations. 

To give the pupils a knowledge of the meaning of 
transportation and its relation to all the great indus- 
tries in the world. 

To develop judgment, organization, initiative; skill 
in reproduction and representation. 

We began by having the pupils collect material for 
making books by arranging and mounting pictures, 
clippings, and drawings, relating the work as far as 
possible to the subject matter in geography and 
history. 

A shelf was placed in the corner of the room for a 
transportation exhibit. Some of the simpler vehicles 
of transportation were made by the pupils. The more 
complex forms were represented by toys and mounted 
pictures. The arrangement on the shelf showed the 
progress from the primitive to the more complex forms 
of to-day. The following outline gives the content of 
the books made by the class and shows the order of 
arrangement. The topics were discussed in class after 
the members had gained information on each from read- 
ing and research, observation, and personal experience. 

1. An introductory page on the importance of 
transportation, in primitive times ; in present times ; 
in the speedy movement of troops, war munitions, and 
food. 

2. List of the different modes of transportation in 
Rockford, Illinois, 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 231 

3. A trip taken by the pupil describing modes of 
travel enjoyed. 

4. A brief story showing the relation of transportation 
to the three great needs of man : food, shelter, clothing. 

5. A study of the following outline showing how 
transportation was a factor in the development, growth, 
and civilization of nations, especially that of the United 
States, 

I. Kinds of transportation : 

1. Early Means : 

By land : on foot, in carriages, by stage 
coaches, on trails ; roads, including Roman 
roads. By water : canoes, rowboats, sailboats, 
fiatboats ; first steamboat on Hudson River, 
Mississippi River, Great Lakes, Atlantic Ocean. 

2. Modern Means : 

By land : railroads, comparing early roads 
with trunk lines of to-day ; automobiles, sug- 
gesting their relation to the demand for better 
roads, and the effect of better roads on the 
farmer ; auto trucks. By water : canal 
boats, suggesting the development of the im- 
portant canals such as the Erie and Panama 
canals ; freighters on the Great Lakes ; ocean 
liners, comparing these with early steamships ; 
submarines ; battleships ; destroyers. By air : 
aeroplanes, describing kinds and use ; balloons. 

The following topics relating to subject matter were 
used as far as possible in carrying out the foregoing 
outline. 



232 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

I. Travel in Colonial Days. 

1. A trip from Boston to Philadelphia. 

2. Washington's trip to Fort Le Boeuf . 

3. Washington's journey from his home in Virginia to 

New York City. 

4. With Daniel Boone in the wilderness. 
II. Later Times. 

1. First steamboat ride up the Hudson. 

2. First steamship trip across the Atlantic. 

3. A trip on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1835. 

4. A trip on the Baltimore and Ohio to-day. 

5. Lewis and Clark Expedition. 

6. A journey across the continent to-day. 

7. Early Forty-niners. 

8. A trip on the Great Lakes with observations. 

9. Experiences on a transport from New York to Brest. 

10. What part has the aeroplane played in present-day 

history ? 

11. What part, in your judgment, will the aeroplane play 

in the future ? 

12. Is the submarine of any use commercially ? 

13. Did rapid transportation in commerce have anything 

to do with the entry of the United States in the 
World War? 

14. Did it have anything to do with our winning the war ? 

15. Transatlantic and transcontinental trips of aero- 

planes. 

The pupils have enjoyed the work. At no time did 
interest seem to lag. I feel that the purpose of both 
teacher and pupil has in the majority of cases been 
accomplished. 

Transportation was an opportune subject at this time. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 233 

Magazines and newspapers contained valuable articles 
both as to past, present, and future modes of travel. 

This project may be used to correlate the Work in 
geography and history. 

Does the United States Produce Enough Sugar to 
Supply Her Own Needs 9 ^ 

Teacher^s Aim : To have the pupil realize in a larger 
way what commercial and social relations of people 
are necessary for the good of the individual, and to 
have him see how man's life is affected by geographic 
controls, such as climate, soil, and rainfall ; also to help 
the pupil to become more independent in his thinking, 
to have more initiative, and specifically to lead him to 
develop an interest in the production of the common 
necessities of life. 

Pupils' Aim : (l) To find out whether the United 
States produces enough sugar for its own needs; (2) to 
make the sugar booklets and sugar exhibit. 

Method of Procedure : The sugar project was intro- 
duced by an informal talk on sweets relative to their 
popularity and the extent to which they are used, 
during which arose the question, '' Does the United 
States produce enough sugar to supply her own needs ? " 
This question, coming at the close of our talk in which 
we also discussed the scarcity of sugar during the war, 
was of great interest to the pupils and became the 

1 A project developed by Clara E. Kanger, teacher of the fifth grade, 
Kent School, Rockford, Illinois. 



234 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

basis for research work leading to a desire to know 
where sugar cane grows and how much of the United 
States is available for producing this plant. 

They found that Louisiana is the chief sugar produc- 
ing state, and the question naturally arose, " Why 
does Louisiana produce most sugar cane ? " Thus, 
with the teacher's aid and the use of maps and reference 
books, the pupils worked out the fact that Louisiana 
has been especially benefited by the Mississippi River 
as to soil ; that this river has actually taken rich soil 
of other states and carried it down to Louisiana, 
and that this advantage, together with the warm 
climate and abundant rainfall, makes this state es- 
pecially fitted for the successful growing of sugar 
cane. 

In the course of this work, the pupils learned to use 
the indexes of their own geographies, and to avail 
themselves of many sources of information other than 
the textbook. In developing the fact that the 
Mississippi River is responsible for Louisiana's rich 
soil, they learned incidentally how rivers and valleys 
are formed and how running water is forever tearing 
down and leveling the land, leaving the poorer soil on 
the hills and the rich soil in the valleys. The next 
step, viz., finding out how sugar cane is raised, natur- 
ally grew out of this discussion, which closed with the 
process of manufacture and the location of the refin- 
eries. At this point, the question came up, " Why are 
so many sugar refineries located in the New England 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 235 

States ? " This called for consideration of the South- 
ern life of past years, and, especially, of the topic 
of slavery. 

But we had not yet settled the question of the United 
States' ability to supply her own needs. Every 
day, new and interesting facts were brought up by 
various pupils ; some soon discovered that a large 
amount of our sugar is made from beets, others dis- 
covered that there are other kinds of sugar, such as 
maple and grape. We were especially fortunate in 
having in our class a boy who had lived in Louisiana, 
and, in spite of the fact that the class ascertained that 
we produce both beet and cane sugar in large quanti- 
ties, he asserted that he saw shiploads of raw sugar 
from Cuba and Porto Rico come into New Orleans 
very frequently. This naturally led to an interest 
in Cuba and Porto Rico. These islands were located 
on the map, and their history discussed, thus leading 
to the story of Columbus and ending with the Spanish 
American War. Through the story of the latter event, 
the Philippine Islands became a subject of interest, 
and the fact was discovered that these islands, too, 
produce much sugar. In connection with this work 
our interests, of course, included the habits and cus- 
toms of people inhabiting these islands. Through this 
work in connection with the Philippine Islands we 
learned at least one reason for the location of sugar 
refineries at San Francisco. Finally, one boy found a 
reference that stated conclusively how much of our 



236 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

sugar we are able to produce ourselves and how much 
is imported. By means of a sugar-cane map the pupils 
found that other countries with climate and soil similar 
to those of Louisiana also produce sugar cane. In this 
connection we found out that cane sugar originated in 
India. 

At the very beginning of our work, the pupils found 
interesting pictures, some of which they cut from 
discarded books and magazines and eagerly showed 
to the class. By the way, pictures furnished a 
constant and most interesting source of information 
for our work — hence, we decided to make a sugar- 
booklet, using our English periods for writing up 
interesting things that had been discussed in the pre- 
ceding geography class. We also decided to write to va- 
rious companies listed under ^^ Material on Geography,'' 
in the Normal School Bulletin, published by the 
Eastern Illinois State Normal School at Charleston. 
These companies supply literature and exhibits on 
geographical topics either free or at very small cost. 
Hence, each one chose a company to write to, and then, 
of course, we found it necessary to develop the writing 
of a good business letter. When, in due time, the re- 
plies came in the form of attractive booklets containing 
interesting pictures and literature often accompanied 
by a real business letter from the company itself, the 
pupils' faces invariably beamed with pleasure, and each 
one, without exception, asked permission to take his 
reply home to show to his parents. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 237 

To make our booklets complete, we decided to in- 
clude items concerning other kinds of sugar, also. We 
studied the subject of beet sugar in detail ; the climate 
and soil best suited to the growth of sugar beets ; the 
history of sugar beet culture, which took us to France 
and touched upon European life and the recent war ; 
the method of raising beets and the process of making 
sugar from them. Comparisons were made throughout 
with sugar cane. 

We took up maple sugar in a similar manner. The 
pupils were surprised to learn that the Indians were 
the discoverers of this kind of sugar. This information 
was gained from the free literature which they had 
received in reply to their letters. During the English 
period, the children not only wrote accounts of interest- 
ing things discussed during the geography period, but 
mounted pictures relating to the subject, and even 
made drawings if no other illustrations were available. 
They also made maps showing where the various kinds 
of sugar were produced. Their books also contained 
something about honey, which they found was the first 
sweet substance known. Interesting articles cut from 
magazines, including those on ways and means of saving 
sugar, were mounted and added to their collections of 
material for their booklets. We also discussed and 
wrote an account of the causes of our sugar shortage 
during the war. Finally, we worked out an outline 
showing the order in which the stories of sugar ought 
to be bound, an index was made, and the pages of the 



238 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

booklets placed within covers which had been designed 
and made during drawing periods. We concluded our 
work by making a sugar exhibit consisting of several 
small bottles filled each with a different kind of sugar 
and mounted on a piece of cardboard with a note of 
explanation under each. The contents of the bottles, 
with one or two exceptions, were provided by pupils 
of the class, and they selected a committee of two to 
attend to the work of mounting the bottles. 

During the entire period of time spent on the sub- 
ject of sugar the children showed a high degree of 
interest. Especially was this evident during the class 
periods; for at this time problems arose and were 
solved, and free, courteous discussion was allowed among 
the children on all questions that arose relative to the 
subject. The pupils were allowed to use their refer- 
ence books at any time during the recitation periods, if 
necessary, in order to answer a question or solve some 
problem that came up in the course of their discussion. 
Arithmetical problems in connection with the s\ib- 
ject appeared from time to time, and thus arithmetic 
was correlated with geography. Their books, though 
crude and unfinished in some respects, are, neverthe- 
less, treasured possessions, while the exhibit was used 
to advantage in another grade. 

The study of the sugar industry may be introduced 
in many other ways, such as through a candy sale for 
the purpose of raising money for a room or for the entire 
school. Also, added interest in the subject may be 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 239 

secured by actually collecting maple sap and boiling it 
until it becomes sugar. The making of a book of 
choice cake, pudding, and candy recipes might be 
another way of approach, and, in this way, the interest 
of the children might be aroused in making wholesome 
candies instead of buying the cheap varieties of ques- 
tionable quality. The planting of sorghum or sugar 
beets in the home or school gardens might also prove 
interesting. The important thing, of course, is that 
the child shall have a real purpose to carry out, — a 
purpose which is really his and not merely the echo of 
some other person's idea. 

The author considers this project interesting because 
situations were developed in carrying this unit of work 
to completion which involved geography, arithmetic, 
history, writing, art, and hand work. 

Projects in History 

Why the United States Declared War on Germany, 
— A class in current events was discussing the war as 
a contest between autocracy and democracy. Grant- 
ing the oppressiveness and brutality of the German 
autocracy, one boy would not see that the United States 
was justified in going to war to oppose it. The boy 
was obviously ignorant of many of the other reasons 
for our entry into the war. He had been on his father's 
ranch since the declaration of war, and had not read 
the newspapers. He had no German connections, or 
sympathies. 



240 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

His project was the task of finding out just why we 
declared war on Germany. His instructions merely 
said that he should consult three sources of informa- 
tion, each a different kind of source. 

His report to the class a week later was illuminating 
to others besides himself. An uncle had given him the 
purely moral grounds for our entry — the assault on 
Belgium, the outrages in northern France, the barbarity 
of the aerial warfare, and the inhumanity of the sub- 
marine campaign. 

A bulletin of the Committee on Public Information 
had furnished him with a review of the evidence that 
Germany started the war for imperialistic reasons, and 
this fact, together with the character of the German 
warfare, had convinced him that the ultimate safety 
of the United States demanded Germany's defeat. 
Several newspaper writers had expressed the opinion 
that the collapse of Russia insured a German victory 
unless our aid should become quickly effective. 

These considerations appealed to him strongly, but 
he was even more surprised by the record of sub- 
marine sinkings involving the death of Americans. A 
copy of the Review of Reviews had published a com- 
plete list of all the vessels so sunk, together with 
the diplomatic action taken by the United States in 
each case. 

These grounds he regarded as more than sufficient 
reason for our entering the war without considering it 
as a struggle between autocracy and democracy. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 241 



What Progress Has Been, Made in the World War 
over the Civil Warf^ — After the preliminary discus- 
sion which led to the choice of this problem for study, 
several lessons were given to a consideration of how 
the material could best be organized for compari- 
son. A list of topics was prepared which formed 
the basis for study and for the assignments to 
the members of the class. Following is the list of 
topics : 

I. Preparations. 

II. Drafting of armies. 

III. Equipment; guns; supplies. 

IV. Financing. 

V. Camps and training. 

VI. Transportation of troops. 

VII. Navy. 

VIII. Battlefields; trenches; maps. 

IX. Red Cross ; Sanitary Commission. 

X. Directing of battle lines. 

XI, Generals ; comparison of commanders. 

XII. Battles — land, sea; blockades. 

XIII. Morale. 

XIV. Destruction — land^ property, troops. 

XV. Objectives taken ; forts ; effect upon countries. 
XVI. Surrender. 

XVII. Demobilizing — at home ; abroad. 
XVIII. Peace Treaty. 
XIX. Songs — patriotic, 1860 ; cheers, 1918 ; bands, 
1918; drum corps, 1860; poems, 1860; poems, 
1918. 

^ A project reported by Mrs. Haupt, teacher of the eighth grade, 
Kishwaukee School, Rockford, Illinois, 



242 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The next step was to help each one to work up his 
topic by making use of the pubHc hbrary. The 
teacher spent some time at the Hbrary finding sources 
of information relating to the Civil War. The class 
then went to the library to begin the reading. 

The librarian was furnished with the name of each 
child and his topic. She had looked up references and 
placed the material in a convenient place for the pupils. 
After working for one and a half hours, books were 
selected that could be taken home for more work. 
While this was not an ideal method because it left 
little initiative to the children, it seemed expedient 
and enabled the class to carry through a profitable study 
which could not have been accomplished otherwise. 
The class later had instruction in using the card cata- 
logue and in looking up references. 

The next class period was spent in discussing the 
benefit of the afternoon^ s study. Difficulties were 
discussed and methods of overcoming them were pro- 
posed. At this point the pupils wished to begin to 
discuss their topics. It seemed wise for each to 
make an outline of his subject before presenting it. 

Topics were presented in the class in the order of 
the general outline. A general discussion followed each 
talk and opportunity was given for the asking of ques- 
tions, for the giving of information, and for the challeng- 
ing of any point. After the discussion of the topic 
" Financing the War,^' a number of problems in arith- 
metic arose and were solved. The location of camps, 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 243 

forts, and cantonments gave practice in geography. 
It was interesting to note how many took their names 
from Civil War leaders. 

Besides the knowledge gained about both wars, the 
following good results were noticeable : undiminished 
interest throughout the work ; unfailing enthusiasm ; 
advance in ability to prepare work independently; 
more knowledge of using the library ; gain in power 
to present a topic orally before the class. 

Projects in Manual Training 

A Large Project in Manual Training, — The large 
project herein described was carried out in the public 
schools of Clifton, Illinois, during the year 1911-1912, 
under the direction of Principal Charles Trimble, and 
duplicated in part in the Ashkum, Illinois, schools 
during the year 1912-1913. The description of the 
project is practically a description of the whole plan 
of manual training in the Clifton schools. 

There was a desire on the part of the school board, 
parents, and pupils of the school for a course in manual 
training. This same desire may be found in the average 
small school system. There was no definite purpose 
on the part of the people, except that other schools 
had such courses, therefore, in all probability, Clifton 
should have one. The school course was the traditional 
eight-year course with three years of high school work. 
The principal organized the course of study and super- 
vised its administration. The school board, while sym- 



244 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

pathizing with the plan of introducing manual training, 
did not feel that they should spend the money neces- 
sary to install elaborate equipment. They agreed, 
therefore, to furnish the material needed for remodel- 
ing and making the work benches if the boys would do 
the rest. The principal was a practical man, a car- 
penter and builder, and worked at his trade during 
the summer months as well as at odd times during 
the school year. 

In the beginning, Mr. Trimble determined upon 
certain aims. These he found in the lives and activities 
of the children. By conversation with the boys he 
discovered what they wanted to make and what use 
they intended to make of the products. Among these 
were a window seat, a study table, and a playhouse 
for the children. Each boy had some definite thing 
in mind which he wished to make. The boys or their 
parents assumed the responsibility of getting the 
tools and materials necessary. 

The school building was of the regulation grade-school 
type. In the basement, however, was a storeroom in 
which a considerable amount of useless material had 
accumulated. This room the boys decided to make 
their shop. It was unfinished in that it lacked a floor 
and adequate light. The floor, they decided, should 
be cement (Mr. Trimble admitted afterwards that this 
was a mistake) and the windows had to be cut out so 
that full-sized frames could be installed. " At first,'' 
Mr. Trimble said, " the boys worked for me like 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 245 

apprentices." In the matter of constructing the floor, 
however, some investigation was necessary. They 
looked up all the information that they could find 
about cement in the school library, but this proved 
inadequate. They therefore went to the trade journals 
and the literature of the cement companies, with the 
result that they learned the story of cement from the 
time it is mined to the time it is in use in the walk 
or floor. They learned especially the kinds of founda- 
tions used, the proportions used in mixing, the methods 
of mixing, the means of applying, and the precautions 
to be taken. ^^ It was very important," said Mr. 
Trimble, '^ that no mistakes be made. A bad job not 
only detracts from the interest in the work but is a 
continual nuisance." When all was carefully planned 
the boys bought the cement, conveyed it to the school- 
house, and did the job. As a direct result of this 
achievement one of the boys bought material, mixed 
it, and laid a walk at home. 

The next problem was the benches, saw-horses, and 
miter boxes. For these the school board furnished the 
lumber, but all the work was done by the boys. 

^^ In most of the school workshops," said Mr. 
Trimble, ^^ there is a bench for every boy. These are 
equipped with lock vises, patented stops, and plugs. 
We did not see that this was necessary, for, when one 
boy was working at the bench, others could work at 
the ^ horses.' Besides no practical carpenter uses that 
sort of thing." 



246 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Accordingly, one large bench, which extended nearly 
the whole length of the room, and two smaller benches 
were made. These were equipped with vises which the 
boys made and which operated by means of the old- 
style bench screw. The work was carefully planned 
under the supervision of the teacher so that the material 
could be sawed and shaped to fit before assembling. 
There was very little waste in material. In the same 
way, tool boxes were made to fit the tools that the boys 
had or might expect to use. The boys bought their 
tools or carried them from home. A very few special 
tools were supplied by the school board. 

All the work that has been done in this shop has been 
done by the project method. Mr. Trimble first makes 
sure that the boy knows what he wants to make and 
that he has some use for it. The boy must then sub- 
mit a working drawing that is " readable " and the 
dimensions must ^^ prove out." Very little limitation 
is placed on the projects attempted except that the 
product must be useful. The boys are allowed to 
make those things which they or their parents would 
be likely to buy. A few projects have been worked 
out as drill exercises. 

When a boy is " graduated " from this course he takes 
his tool box and tools home with him for his future 
home projects. 

Manual training is not required of any of the pupils, 
but most of the boys and some girls take it. The girls 
have a similar course in sewing given by a teacher 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 247 

who, during the summer months, is a seamstress, dress- 
maker, and milHner. 

Making and Furnishing a DolW House} — When a 
child begins school he is not severing home ties, but he 
is taking his first step in the outside world. Home, 
and all that it means, is still his main thought, so, in 
choosing a dolls' house as a project for a class of 
beginners, I took something that I was sure would 
interest all, and at the same time bridge the gap be- 
tween home and school. I could add to the informa- 
tion of the children by discussing with them during 
the process of building the source and use of the 
materials which we handled, and the need and mean- 
ing of these things in our daily life, thus opening the 
subject of the relation between home and community 
life. 

Through our talks leading up to the adoption of the 
project, the children's aim came to be the building and 
furnishing of a home for their dolls to live in. 

" What do you like to play with at home after 
school, children? " The answers to this question were 
many and various. Some of the boys liked to play 
with their sleds (for it was winter then), others, to roll 
small snowballs into larger ones. One little girl said 
she liked to play house with her doll and her dishes. 
It was then that I learned the history of every doll 
family which my little group of girls possessed. I asked 

1 A project reported by Elsie M. Ford, a teacher of the first grade, 
Kent School, Rockford, Illinois. 



248 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

if their doll families had real dolls' houses to live in. No, 
they didn't seem to have any, so I asked, " How 
would the Httle boys and girls like to make a real house 
for the dolls to live in? " Questions such as, " Can 
we sit in it when it is done ? " and, '^ Will it have a real 
roof and windows?" arose, and every one seemed 
eager to begin right away. 

" What do you suppose we could make our dolls' house 
out of? What material is used in making houses?" 
Through previous talks on the source and use of lum- 
ber, the children were able to answer " lumber," and so 
it was decided to have a frame house. A large box 
found in the school building furnished the body, but, 
as one pupil said, " It doesn't look like a house ; there 
isn't a roof nor any windows." " Would you like to 
put a real shingle roof on it ? " Oh, yes, they thought 
they would. 

Roof boards cut in the right proportion were secured, 
and, after placing the box close to a table so that little 
hands could easily reach, with a little aid the roof 
rafters and roof boards were nailed on. The children 
were then shown how to lay shingles and no house has 
been shingled with greater joy in the work than our dolls' 
house. While shingling we talked about the carpen- 
ter, the origin of shingles and shingle nails, and all 
that had to be done before the shingle and shingle 
nails were ready for use. After the house was shingled, 
the ridge board was nailed into place and painted, and 
the gable painted. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 249 

" Is there anything else to do to this house before 
we move in? " " Oh, Miss Ford, the windows aren't 
in yet ! " A gimlet was secured and many small hands 
took great delight in turning it, and gleaming eyes 
watched the auger as it went through the wood. The 
pastime, then, was counting the holes. Each window 
had four holes and, if any child made a mistake in 
counting, it was quickly noticed and corrected by 
others. Running the keyhole saw was too difficult a 
process for the little people, but shouts of real joy 
greeted each piece of wood as it fell and the window 
came into view. The pieces of wood cut out were 
counted, the windows were counted, the girls and boys 
working were counted. 

" Now, let us move in, children." " We haven't 
any chairs or tables." " Can't we make some ? " "What 
shall we make them out of so that they will be 
like real chairs?" "Wood! Lumber!" Lumber it 
shall be. Thanks to the foresight of our primary 
supervisor we had the lumber on hand, also hammers 
and nails. A few lessons were given in fitting different 
pieces together to see what could be made (the parts 
for the different pieces of furniture having been selected 
and placed in piles). Every one made something and, 
as each piece was made, its name and use were talked 
about. I asked the children if the furniture in their 
homes was the color of that which we had made. No 
one seemed to think so. "Why isn't it?" I asked. 
Through previous talks on painting houses and wood 



250 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

to preserve and beautify, they knew that it was be- 
cause the furniture needed to be painted. Right here, 
the director of all this fun purchased a can of stain for 
its quickly drying and non-sticking qualities, and 
interest surely ran high while the staining was in 
process. Every one painted something. One little 
boy wanted to know if he couldn^t make and stain a 
*' grandfather's clock.'' The pieces suitable for it 
were given him and a clock was the result. A little 
girl cut a white circle and an orange pendulum and 
we had a good-looking clock. 

" Children, do the houses you live in stand right on 
the ground? " No one seemed to have a clear idea, so 
a walk was indulged in, and we came back with the 
idea that our house ought to have a foundation. We 
found that the janitor could furnish us with enough 
brick for the purpose, so several boys brought them to 
the scene of action and our house soon rested on a 
brick foundation. Our house now had a roof to keep 
the rain from coming in, and a foundation to keep the 
floor dry and warm. 

In the meantime, real cloth rugs had been in the 
process of construction on little looms, and by the time 
the furniture was ready for the house, enough rugs were 
ready also. A pink rug with gray border was chosen 
for the bedroom, and the bed, dresser, chair, and 
clothes rack were placed by eager hands. A blue rug 
with a white border was decided on for the sitting 
room, and the bookcase, davenport, library table, 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 251 

and chairs were arranged by the children. A dark 
blue rug with a white border was placed on the dining- 
room floor and the round dining-room table was carried 
into the house, four dining chairs placed around it, and 
the buffet placed close by. Our kitchen furniture 
consisted of a cupboard, kitchen table, and chair ; and 
these were soon in place. Brass tacks furnished the 
handles for the cupboard, sideboard, and dresser, and 
the two latter were decorated with real mirrors. 

" Children, what is the matter with our windows? " 
Answers quickly came, " There is no glass," and " No 
shades to pull down," and "No white curtains!" 
Interest ran high again at the prospect of getting the 
windows to look like those at home. What color 
should the shades be? Many colors were suggested 
but green was decided upon, and oblongs of green 
paper were cut and held in place at the windows by 
push tacks. 

One day, later on, found the little girls grouped 
around the dolls' house, weaving needles and thread 
across the tops of pieces of white cloth. Having had 
previous experience in weaving, this was a light task 
and the curtains for our windows were soon finished. 

We talked about the cotton seed that helped make 
the cloth used in our curtains. 

Pictures, brought by the children, were placed on 
the walls of our house by them, and our dream of 
having a dolls' house had finally come true. 



252 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Projects in Mathematics 

What Problems Are Involved in the Widening of 
Church Street?^ 

Teacher's Aim : To give a thorough review of arith- 
metic. To interest the children and, through the chil- 
dren, the parents in the Rockford Plan. 

We began this work by reading and discussing 
articles from the Rockford Plan Book. We read very 
thoroughly the suggestions on widening Church Street 
and talked about the reasons for the extension of the 
business district to this street. I told the class about 
the necessary change from seventeen feet on each side 
of the street, as first planned, to sixteen feet on each 
side. The class located the Cook Building which was 
involved. 

We read the names of the special committee ap- 
pointed by the Rockford Chamber of Commerce for 
investigating a city plan. I asked the class to talk 
with any member of the committee and report to class 
all the information they received. A committee of 
three called on Mr. George D. Roper and received 
much valuable information. 

With this information added to what we gained 
through reading the Rockford Plan we began to work 
out our problems. We drew a line sixteen feet long 
on the board and the class learned to estimate a distance 

1 A project reported by Alice Nolan, teacher of the eighth grade, 
Blake School, Rockford, Illinois. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 253 

of sixteen feet. Then the class made a careful study of 
Church Street. They found that it would be neces- 
sary to reconstruct fifty-two buildings on Church 
Street between Cedar Street and Peach Street in order 
to widen the street sixteen feet on each side. We 
found one building that would be only six feet wide 
after the necessary change and; after some discussion, 
decided the city would have to buy this property. 

Mr. Roper told the committee two ways were being 
considered for raising the money needed for widening 
Church Street. One way for raising the money was 
by taxes, the other by bonding the city. 

We studied the first way suggested, by taxes. The 
following questions were given to the class : 

1. What are taxes? 

2. What do you mean by assessed valuation? 

3. What was the 1918 rate of taxation for the city 
ofRockford? 

After answering the above questions, the children 
brought the amounts of personal and real estate taxes 
paid by their parents to class and we made those the 
basis of our problems. The Winnebago County road 
tax was very much discussed in the local papers at 
this time and furnished material for many problems. 
The income tax collectors were in our city at this time 
but I found that very few of the pupils heard this 
subject discussed at home and only two pupils knew 
their parents paid an income tax. We made a thorough 



254 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

study of the income tax, hoping all the pupils would 
have future use for it — a tendency to social service. 
Following thiS; we took the principal problems on taxes 
given in our textbook. 

After completing the work on taxes, we studied the 
second method suggested, — bonding the city. We 
spent a short time on government bonds, — the Liberty 
Loan and the Victory Loan with which the class were 
familiar. We followed this with a study of city bonds, 
then discussed bonding the city for the improving of 
Church Street. We found this to be an impossibility 
as it would have to be voted on at a regular election 
or a special election and as our city can only be 
bonded for $400,000 it would not cover the expense. 

We then made a study of the salable property on 
Church Street. Teacher's purpose : — To enable the 
child to study and understand investments for present 
and future use. Through those investments, to review 
interest, mortgages, bank discount, insurance, partial 
payments, and to study the local Building and Loan 
Associations. 

On Church Street between State and Peach, the 
pupils found no property for sale. On South Church 
Street they found that, in the second block on South 
Church Street, the Lewis lot, 29^ feet by 100 feet, was 
for sale. Price $9000. Mr. Lewis told the committee 
that he had paid $3600 for it and that if the street 
were improved he would ask a higher price. We 
decided not to invest in this lot. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 255 

In the third block on South Church Street we found 
a seventeen-room house for sale. In the fourth block, 
we found two places for sale, one residence for $8000, 
but the owner would not sell if the street was to be 
improved. We gave this place no further considera- 
tion. The other place in this block was on the market 
for $15,000, but to us, at the present time, undesirable. 

Upon further consideration we thought the seven- 
teen-room house might be a good investment. At 
present it rents for fifty dollars a month and is used 
for a rooming house. After deducting taxes, insur- 
ance, and making allowance for repairs, we found fifty- 
dollars a month a very poor income from $15,000. 

We decided to buy this property, making a cash 
payment of $5000 and the remainder in monthly pay- 
ments of $100. The rate of interest was 6 per cent. 
Here we made a study of contracts, mortgages, and 
Building and Loan Associations. The class found 
that we had two such associations in Rockford and 
a committee from the class called on each and studied 
its business methods. 

The class found that, if this property were bought, 
the purchaser would have to assume the responsibility 
of the taxes and insurance. A member of the class 
brought in insurance literature which was studied by 
the class. Both fire and life insurance policies were 
brought to class and investigated. In connection with 
life insurance, we studied " old-line " accident and 
life insurance. 



256 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

The definite outcome of this project was shown on 
the pupiFs papers. The summary of one is given here : 

Result of House Problem 

$15,000 — Price asked for the house. 
$5,000 — Cash payment. 
$100 — Monthly payments. 

6% — Rate of interest. 
(Problem was fully worked out in partial payments. Follow- 
ing is summary.) 

$13,800.00 — Amount paid in 138 months — $100 payment 
monthly. 
97.63 — Balance due the 139th month. 
$13,897.63 
5,000.00 
$18,897.63 — Total amount paid. 
15,000.00 
$3,897.63 — Interest paid. 

We found that it would take 11 years and 7 months to pay 
for the house, during which time we would have to pay the 
taxes, insurance, and repairs, therefore we concluded that the 
transaction would be a poor investment. 

A Project in Solid Geometry. — The following project 
was used in a class in solid geometry composed of twelve 
boys. The class had been studying mensuration and 
volumes, when the instructor happened to hear of the 
possible project. At the home of one of the members 
of the class the construction of a driveway was con- 
templated. The information desired was : Which side 
of the house would be the better place for it, and, then, 
how much excavation and how much material would 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 257 

be required for its construction ? The class was given 
the project and given two days to work out the solu- 
tion. The result proved to be accurate and satis- 
factory in every particular. 

A Project in Solid Geometry, Physics, and Manual 
Training. — Another project used in this class cut 
across three subjects. The boys needed a number 
of shots for spring athletics. It was found that a 
local foundry would cast them for a mere fraction of 
the cost at which they could be procured at a sport- 
ing goods house. However, the foundry needed 
a model. The physics class was appealed to for in- 
formation as to the mass and volume of the iron in 
order that the shot should be of correct weight. The 
teacher reported an unprecedented interest in the 
rather dry subject of density and specific gravity. 
The solid geometry class was consulted as to the method 
of finding the volume of a sphere, and when the data 
were complete, they were taken to the woodworking 
room of the manual training department, where the 
spherical model was made. When the shots were de- 
livered from the foundry, it was proved that the classes 
had done very accurate work as the shots varied less 
than a quarter pound from the necessary weight. 

A Project in Arithmetic in the Grades. — The pur- 
pose of this project was to learn to determine the 
amount of wall-paper needed for the rooms in the 
children's homes and to determine the validity of the 
paper hanger's account. 



258 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

There is always more or less paper-hanging done 
in every school district. The teacher may presuppose 
that this will take place every spring and plan for the 
occasion by finding out, among the pupils, which 
families are going to do papering. Interest may be 
aroused by asking the children if they do not wish to 
be of help to their parents by measuring the rooms 
and figuring the amount of paper necessary and by 
this method s^ave the parents' money and time. It is 
a fact that many paper hangers waste paper and charge 
the customer for more material and labor than is 
necessary. Paper hangers are paid by the bolt as 
well as for the paper. The more bolts cut, the greater 
the profit. This situation offers a good chance to 
interest the pupils in papering problems. 

A Project in Biology 

Relation of Wheat Rust to Barberry. — During the 
spring of 1918, when our government was doing its 
utmost to conserve wheat, the botany classes of the 
Urbana (Illinois) High School (three classes with a 
total of sixty students) carried on a project which had 
as its aim a lessening of the enormous loss of wheat 
due to wheat rust. 

We proceeded as follows : • 

1. We made a laboratory study of the life history 
of wheat rust (Puccinia graminis), during which we 
found that the early spring spores of wheat rust must 
be parasitic on the common barberry {Berheris vul- 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 259 

garis) if they are to germinate ; consequently the 
extermination of the common barberry in lUinois 
would mean the extermination of wheat rust. 

2. We brought into the schoolroom as many news- 
paper and current magazine articles as we could find 
concerning the relation between wheat rust and the 
barberry. One member of the class, who had a friend 
in the government service as an investigator of wheat 
rust, had some original information to give us. 

3. We made an examination of the shrubs in our 
school yard, and found seven of the dangerous barberry 
plants right at our very door. These we examined 
very carefully so that we might be certain of their 
identity. Then with great ceremony we dug them up ; 
for several of the girls had written poems entitled 
" Ode to the Death of the Barberry " to be read on 
this occasion. The best ^' Ode " was printed in the 
school newspaper. 

4. About seventy-five per cent of the class volun- 
teered for the real work, and these students were 
organized in teams of two. A committee elected by 
the students secured a map of the town, and assigned 
each team a given part of the town to be inspected, 
in such a way that not a dooryard or a lawn was 
omitted by the student inspectors. Even the city 
park did not escape. 

5. Wherever common barberry plants were found, 
the students explained to the property owners how 
these shrubs were lessening our supply of wheat, and 



260 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

suggested their removal. The students made their 
records on cards, in each case telling whether the 
property owner promised or refused removal of the 
shrubs. 

6. Reports of all the students were tabulated by 
a committee, — the tabulated report showing (a) the 
number of barberry plants in the city ; (6) the number 
of property owners possessing these shrubs ; (c) the 
number of property owners who promised to remove 
the shrubs ; (d) the number who refused. This final 
report was printed in the city's daily paper. 

7. When a rumor reached us that some one in the 
City Council was to propose an ordinance providing 
for the eradication of the barberry, we sent a repre- 
sentative to the city council's meeting, with the exact 
data concerning barberry plants in the city. Un- 
fortunately the council passed the ordinance without 
discussion, and there was no need of the boy's data. 

Since the extermination of barberry now became 
the duty of the city police force and not of the high- 
school botany classes,, our project had now reached its 
end. 

Results. — 1. Even the poorest student knew the 
life history of wheat rust, and its relation to barberry. 

2. Very great class interest. Before we were through 
canvassing the town, a wealthy citizen telephoned to 
the school for two "experts" to examine his shrubs for 
barberry. Imagine how important our boy " experts " 
felt! 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 261 

3. A large number of barberry plants were actually 
removed, and we thus helped our government to con- 
serve the wheat. 

May I add that this project took only about a week 
of class time, for the students wanted to work outside. 

Projects in Home Economics 

A Remodeling Project. — The project is to make 
over a girl's room so that it shall be artistically satisfy- 
ing, mentally stimulating, and mechanically con- 
venient. 

Method of Procedure. — Each girl shall determine the 
meaning and purpose of the house and the home and 
what they signify. Furnish reading and discuss it with 
her. Give sufficient time for clarifjdng ideas. A note- 
book shall record the various phases of the project. 

The students should be given the opportunity to 
discover some principles in art as applied to a room. 
For example: why not place rugs diagonally; why 
not hang pictures by a wire and one nail ; why is one 
design good ; another bad ; etc. Observations shall 
be made to clarify the problems. Readings and dis- 
cussions shall lead to their solution. 

Each pupil shall make a drawing of the room, giving di- 
mensions, locating position of furniture, windows, and 
doors, and indicating exposure of room, and means of 
heating. The furniture and articles in the room shall 
be described in detail. 

Each pupil shall make a plan for the proposed 



262 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

changes. A generous supply of illustrations shall be 
available for the study. Plans shall include reasons 
for any change proposed, involving whatever principles 
of art the pupil may have learned or developed. Other 
principles will be developed as the project proceeds. 
Changes may include : 

1. Cleaning of wall paper or, perhaps, repapering. 

2. Remodeling and refinishing of furniture. New 
furniture is not included in the scheme. 

3. Remodeling and rehanging of draperies or cur- 
tains. 

4. Selection and hanging of pictures. 

5. Re-placing of furniture. 

6. Floor covering. 

7. Whatever small buying may be agreed upon. 

8. Mending of door latches, hooks and hangers, 
knobs on dressers, etc. 

9. Device for ventilation. 

The pupil shall write out in detail changes proposed. 
These shall be discussed and any changes that seem 
desirable may be talked over and agreed upon. If 
any radical change is proposed in the color scheme, it 
shall be illustrated by a sample. 

When finished, the results shall be checked up, 
the principles reviewed, and the notebook completed. 

Time for the project, three to five months. 

A Project in Dietetics. — The object of the follow- 
ing project was to determine how much food a person 
should eat each day. We took into consideration 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 263 

our occupations and the average weight of the class. 
We were then told to figure out a day's menu on this 
scale. Using this menu, we prepared and ate three 
meals in the domestic science department on one day. 
These meals furnished all the food that we ate that 
day. In this way we were impressed with the fact 
that ordinarily a person eats too much, and not a suf- 
ficiently varied diet. We took much more interest in 
the problem of preparing our menu, knowing that we 
should have to eat what we planned, than we would 
have taken in planning some representative menu only 
to be recorded in our notebooks. The facts taught 
by this project made more emphatic in our minds 
the actual doing of the thing planned. 

A Project in Cooking. — In one of the domestic 
science classes of a southern school, a plan was formu- 
lated to serve cheap but nutritious lunches. The girls 
planned their meals so as to use as many as possible 
of the substitutes advocated by the United States 
Food Administration. They obtained much valuable 
experience in practical cooking which they were able 
to use in their own homes. The school has been able, 
through its lunch department, to pay a portion of the 
expenses of the domestic science department. 

Projects in Physics 

A Project in Ventilation. — Ventilation : Why and 
How Do It? Guide questions and problems for plan- 
ning and working out the project : 



264 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

1. What are the respective lengths of time a person 
can live without food, without water, and without air ? 

2. Which have you considered most important and 
why? 

3. Is it hkely that lack of ventilation has been and 
is the cause of physical imperfections and social in- 
efficiency? Ventilation plays an important part in. 
the treatment of what infectious disease ? 

4. How does a knowledge and understanding of 
the question offer an opportunity for performing a 
social service ? 

5. What is the attitude of the industrial world 
toward ventilation ? 

6. What are the requirements for the air we 
breathe? Examine the floors and furniture in houses 
and reflect upon the composition of the body and effect 
of air upon it. 

7. What changes in the ventilation of our houses 
does this suggest, and how could they be accomplished ? 

8. Suggest ways for humidifying the air : in 
homes ; in public buildings. 

9. List the number of churches, schools, town halls, 
stores, houses, in which there is some device for humidi- 
fying the air. 

10. What plan will suit your home ? 

11. What other quality must air possess in order 
to make it comfortable and healthful ? 

12. What relation do these requirements bear to 
each other? 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 265 

13. What are the methods for warming not heating 
the air, and how do they influence ventilation ? 

14. Is there still another requirement for the air we 
breathe ? 

15. It is no longer believed that ventilation is wholly 
an engineer's problem. That being the case, upon 
whom are we now depending? How do you explain 
this changed attitude? 

Refer to physiology, physics, and chemistry and 
help discover that now we turn from chemistry to 
physics — from the lungs to the skin. Heat which 
the body must get rid of is carried away through the 
skin by conduction, convection, evaporation. These 
processes are hindered or promoted by air surround- 
ing our bodies. Observe and ask for explanations of 
humid days, " dry '' days, cold and warm days. Re- 
call people sleeping in church; children in school; 
sunstroke. 

16. What is the purpose of the electric fan ? 

17. What are the methods in use for ventilating 
houses ? Public buildings ? 

18. Upon what principle do the devices used in resi- 
dences operate? In large public buildings? 

19. What objections to the method used in resi- 
dences ? How overcome them ? 

20. Have student attend to ventilation of school- 
room, or inspect the system and offer suggestions if not 
found satisfactory to him. 

21. What plan has student devised for his own 



266 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

room? The bam where animals are kept if he has 
one? 

22. What interest have we in the ventilation of 
the stables for cows? Chance here for work on im- 
provement of milk supply. 

23. Cost of ventilation. Does it pay? 

Very excellent material is now published on the 
subject of ventilation. I should make it available to 
the student. It is my opinion that the student will 
inspect and finally devise a plan of ventilation to meet 
the needs of his home. 

The Automobile. — The automobile furnishes excel- 
lent illustrations for most of the principles in physics. 
In one of the large city high schools the automobile 
was made the unit or basis of the practical work in 
physics. It was surprising how few principles in physics 
could not be illustrated in this way. If the prin- 
ciples developed and illustrated in this project are 
later arranged in a logical order and reviewed, prob- 
ably with additional illustrations, the method will 
produce satisfactory results. The systematic drill is 
very important and must not be slighted. 

The Fireless Cooker. — The study of the principles 
of the fireless cooker and the construction of one for 
the home makes a good project. This project will 
involve the study of the conductivity of different 
liquids, solids, and gases and the different means by 
which heat is transferred. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 267 

Projects in Foreign Languages 

A Project in German. — This project was tried the 
first year that German had been introduced as a subject 
in the course. The class consisted of freshmen and 
sophomores. We had discarded the direct method of 
teaching German only because of inability to secure a 
teacher who could handle the language fluently. Con- 
versational exercises had, however, been a part of 
each recitation and the class did considerable reading. 
It was proposed to have a German party and dinner 
at which only German should be spoken. 

Arrangements for the party included a study of 
the common articles of food characteristically German. 
These comprised the menu of the dinner. Habits of 
dress and conduct of the various German classes were 
studied in so far as possible and these were represented 
in costume and conversation. The rules of the game 
were that no word was to be spoken save in German. 
No attention was to be paid at the table to any one 
asking for a dish unless the request was in correct 
German, nor should the dishes be passed without this 
request. The " toasts '^ were prepared and given in 
German. 

The preparation on the part of the students con- 
sisted in the study of the menu and appropriate 
table manners, the preparation of the "toasts," and 
the working out of a vocabulary for certain topics of 
conversation. 



268 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

As an incentive and model, some students not in the 
German class but who spoke German in their homes 
were invited. 

This could not be called a true project for the set- 
ting was entirely artificial. The exercise served ad- 
mirably to motivate the work and seemed worth while 
from the standpoint of acquiring a vocabulary. 

A Project in French. — Many of our soldiers learned 
French by the project method. They were placed in 
situations which demanded a knowledge of the lan- 
guage. The desire to make purchases and to converse 
with the French people acted as a powerful stimulus 
to acquire a speaking vocabulary. If our French 
classes could correspond with students in France, the 
scheme would approach the project method. 

Projects Cutting across Several Fields of 
Subject Matter 

Construction and Furnishing of a Bungalow Cottage} 
— The teacher's purpose was to furnish a live problem 
which would carry a review of arithmetic, the various 
operations, and their application in measurements and 
costs. The working out of the problem revealed 
several advantages of the project method over the 
^' study-recite " method. It furnished a motive which 
sent each pupil out to seek material and information 
wherever he could secure it. The problems involved 

1 A project reported by Minnie Murtfelt, teacher of the seventh 
grade, Kishwaukee School, Rockford, lUinois. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 269 

were more easily taught and more easily understood 
because they were more interesting than the ones in 
the book. A greater amount of work was successfully 
covered in a given time. The girls and boys gained 
the power to image the problem ; they pictured every 
step in the building of the bungalow as far as we were 
able to go. 

Having decided in my own mind that this would be 
of vital interest to the pupils, I led up to the plan by 
a few questions. Before many minutes the girls and 
boys were entering into the discussion with questions 
and ideas that came to their minds : " My father is a 
contractor and I can find out about houses " ; " My 
father builds houses and I can bring some plans." 
The next step was to decide what size the house 
should be, what its position should be, and about what 
it should cost. Here the children took the initiative 
and went out and investigated for themselves. They 
found that a modern bungalow cottage would cost 
from $4500 to $5000. They brought in books, maga- 
zines, blue prints. They went to the public library 
and found books containing plans. After carefully 
examining the various plans, I asked each child to 
draw the plan of a house such as he would like to live 
in. These plans were discussed and the good and bad 
points pointed out. The best one, with perhaps a 
few changes, was put on the blackboard, and all drew 
accurately to a scale of j^ to 1'. This gave them 
excellent drill in ratio and proportion. Now we were 



270 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

ready to lay off our lot and place the corners for the 
house. We did this on the school grounds with the 
use of the carpenter's measuring line. I wanted them 
to have the real size in mind, so we used exact measures, 
the lot 50 ft. X 120 ft., and the house 28 ft.X38 ft. ; the 
house to be 20 ft. from the street and to be on a line 
with the other houses in the block. 

In connection with the class work, I decided, if it 
could be arranged, to have a real house built, but did 
not see at first Just how it was to be accomplished. 
When I spoke of it, one boy said, " My father will 
build us a small house.'' Still that would not be so 
good as to have the boys build it themselves. Finally, 
our manual training teacher aided us in bringing about 
the desired result. The work has been of vital interest 
to the children because, as one boy put it, " We are 
doing a man's job." 

It became evident that not only the children were 
interested but the parents as well. One mother came 
over to see me before school to bring some material 
and to tell me how much her boy talked about the real 
house. Several of the parents have come to see the 
building in progress and have thought the work prac- 
tical and the problems more suitable than so many that 
are given in the books. One parent, who is a foreman 
in one of the factoiies, furnished a good part of the 
lumber. 

Below are given some of the problems that we 
have been working. All the children have worked all 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 271 

the problems, some by short cuts, as the carpenter 
would work them. Problems originating in the shop 
room were brought upstairs. The boys were called 
upon to explain the various phases of the work, the 
test of their explanations being how well the girls 
understood. All problems were solved with the house 
before us in the classroom. One boy's question, '' How 
are we going to pay for this house? " led to several 
visits to banks, the procuring of blank forms and 
information, and a motivated review of bank accounts, 
borrowing, and various phases of interest. 

When the building part is completed, the girls will 
have the big job of furnishing the house and I hope to 
have them do it in connection with the domestic science 
work next year, bringing their problems to the boys. 

Problems 

I. Corners of lot 40' X 120' laid off on school grounds. 
Corners for house 38'X28' placed on lot. 
House to face the east and 20' from the street. 

II. Plan of house decided upon and drawn accurately to the 
scale of i" to 1'. 

III. Basement to have furnace room, laundry room, and room 

for fruit and vegetables. 
Main floor of six rooms and bath. 
Attic to have two large rooms. 
Foundation of concrete with brick 30" above ground. 

IV. Construction of foundation. 

Use soft pine f " thick and 7" wide for concrete and brick, 
painting upper 30" a brownish red for brick imitation. 



272 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Make wall 28"X38'' exact outside measure and 7" high. 

Cut window openings 3"X2^'' and put in window frames 
of ^" material. 

Put in cross walls 7" high of f " pine for concrete ; one under 
partition between living room and dining room; one 
under partition between front chamber and bath ; and 
one under partition running lengthwise 13|'' long near 
center. 

Cover bottom with f boards. 

V. Basement: 

1. Excavation. 

Give the cost at 50 cents per cubic yard of excavation 
for cellar 28'X38'X4§'. Amount of earth removed 
and what it would be worth if sold. 

2. Foundation. Number of cubic feet of concrete in a 

9'' wall 4|' high for house 28'X38' outside. 

3. Cross wall in cellar. 

How many cubic feet in 9" cross wall 7' high, one 
being 26|' long and the other 13|' long, allowing for 
two doorways 3' wide and 6' 6" high? 

4. How many cubic yards in all the walls ? 

5. How many cubic yards in the 3'' floor of basement 

26|'X36|', allowing for two 9" cross walls, one 
26|' long and the other 13|'? 

6. How much gravel will it take for the entire wall and 

floor? 

7. How many sacks of cement for wall, the cement add- 

ing nothing to bulk, if three sacks to the yard are 
needed ? 

8. Cost of concrete floor and concrete walls when gravel 

costs $1.70 per yard delivered, and cement costs 
$2.40 per sack delivered, and it takes five men two 
eight-hour days at 80 cents per hour to complete it. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 273 

9. How many bricks in a 9" wall 30" above ground allow- 
ing for eight cellar windows 2^' by 3', there being 
twenty-two bricks to the cubic foot? Also give 
cost of brick wall counting it 10 per cent more per 
cubic foot of wall than concrete. 

10. Find the number of board feet in two 6"X10" beams 

used for the ends of joists to rest on, near the middle 
of basement, one being 13'1'' long and the other 12' 
long. 

11. How much 2" lumber for eight cellar windows, frames 

8" wide and 12" long ? 

12. Figure the cost of two beams and the cellar window 

frames at $80 per M. 

13. Total cost of entire basement made ready for floor. 
a. Excavation. 

h. Concrete. 

c. Brick. 

d. Window frames and two beams. 

(The above includes the best of material) extra strong wall, 
and union labor wages.) 

Construction of Joists, Rough Floor, and Cellar Steps 

1. One row of 2X10 joists is 13' \l" long. The other row 
is 14' 7^". How many in each row if they are 16" apart and if 
one extra one is used for one end ? 

2. If 2X10's are spiked on ends of joists how many of them 
16' long are needed ? 

3. Material for joists i"X|". 

4. Give cost of joists and steps at $80 per M. 

5. Lay rough floor cornerwise of |" material. 

6. What is the cost of the rough floor at $40 per M. 

7. Cost of joists, rough floor, and steps (without labor) is ? 



274 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

Studding on Main Floor 

1. Studding for all room walls. 

55— 2X'4— 18' long for outside walls. 
45—2X4—18' long for partitions. 
22—2X4—18' long for plate and under piece. 

2. Cost of above at $60 per M. 



Sheeting for House 

1. How much ship-lap for sheeting the outside of building, 
allowing nothing for waste in windows and doors ? 

Cost of ship-lap at $80 per M? 

Find cost of flooring for two floors at $90 per M, adding | for 
waste and matching. 

Stairs 

1. How many steps will it take with an 8" rise to reach the 
top floor 10' above the bottom floor ? 

2. How many treads needed ? 

3. Considering 200 board feet in stairs, averaging $100 per 
M, what will they cost ? 

Rafters 

1. Find length of long rafter, peak being 18' above plate 
and front of porch 29' from a point beneath peak and allowing 
2' for tail at lower end of rafter. 

2. Find cost of long rafters using seventy-four 2"X6"— 18' 
long at $80 per M. 

3. Find cost of roof boards at $60 per M, adding i for waste 
and dormer roof, the boards to run out 2' over the gables. 

In carrying the project to completion, problems arose in 
manual training, arithmetic, and domestic art. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 275 

Study of Pastoral People and Wool} 

Teacher's Purpose. — To teach the children to ap- 
preciate and understand some phases of their own Hfe 
and experience through teaching them the Hfe of the 
Hebrew people as a type of shepherds. 

Development. — The first step which led to the de- 
velopment of this project was the making of a wool 
mat, an industrial art problem. This mat naturally 
led to the question : " Where do we get the wool for 
making our mats?" The children had learned in 
lower grades that wool came from sheep and so we 
began discussing sheep — their care, etc. 

A collection of pictures was then made by the chil- 
dren and carefully examined and discussed by the class. 
We have a lantern in our building and I was fortunate 
enough to secure slides representing shepherd life and 
the Hebrew people. The children now knew that 
the Hebrews were a pastoral people and so the story 
of Joseph was read to them and later retold by them. 
The Twenty-third Psalm was also memorized. 

Having become very much interested in sheep and 
shepherd life, a trip was made to a small sheep farm 
near by. Here much was learned about the habits, 
food, care, and shearing of sheep, and the price of wool. 

A pelt was secured and was sheared by hand by the 

children. We discussed this method of shearing by 

hand and also the method used to-day, which was 

1 A project reported by Emma Johnson, teacher of third grade, O. F. 
Barbour School, Rockford, Illinois. 



276 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

demonstrated on our visit to the farm. Pans of warm 
water and soap were provided and each child washed 
some dirty, greasy wool. Then a discussion took place 
concerning the effects of hot and hard water on wool 
and woolen fabrics. 

The children now saw that the men in the factory 
must have some machine with which to straighten the 
fibers. We were not able to secure cards strong enough 
to card our wool, so when our spinning wheel was 
secured, the class readily saw that a smooth, even yarn 
could not be spun. They then saw the importance of 
cards. 

Becoming interested in the modern factory method 
of carding, spinning, and weaving. Miss Sheldon ac- 
companied us to the woolen mill where we had a chance 
to see all the processes by machine. 

This project carried the work of the grade into the 
following subjects : 

I. Construction and Design. — The project centered 
on the making of a wool book, sewed and designed by 
the class and containing pictures of shepherd life ; 
samples of unwashed and washed wool ; wool carded 
and spun by machinery ; written stories on trips, 
shearing, and washing of wool. Mauve's pictures were 
studied in the art appreciation class. 

II. Language. — In addition to the writtei^i language 
mentioned above, the story of Joseph was retold and 
dramatized, and letters of thanks were written to guides 
in places we visited. 



APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT METHOD 277 

III. Spelling. — Study of words needed in written 
description. 

IV. Arithmetic. — Problems based on manufactured 
goods, raw wool, etc. 

V. Music. — Gaynor songs about " wool.'' 

VI. Handwork. — Sand-table representation of 

Joseph. 

Summary 

A careful study of the projects cited in this chapter 
is sufficient to show the great interest that may be 
aroused by this method, and that it is possible to teach, 
at least certain units of the elementary and high school 
subjects, by the project method. No attempt has 
been made in this book to organize a subject for teach- 
ing, completely on the project basis. 

Before the teacher attempts to teach a subject by 
this method, certain suggestions should be considered. 
The ^teacher should, first of all, survey the subject 
planned for teaching in order to enumerate all the 
facts, principles, and processes which are to be taught. 
This material should be arranged in a logical or system- 
atic order. Then the projects which the teacher ex- 
pects to use in this subject should be outlined to see 
how much of the material, logically arranged, will be 
taken care of by these projects. 

It is probable that many facts, principles, and 
processes which should be taught are not provided for 
in these projects. Projects should be developed for 
these items of knowledge. If it is found difficult to 



278 THE PROJECT METHOD OF TEACHING 

provide projects for these facts^ or if the project method 
seems to be uneconomical, then the problem method 
or the method of presenting the material systematically 
should be utilized. There should be a sufficient num- 
ber of projects emphasizing the same facts to provide 
for habits and skills. 

After the facts have been introduced and taught by 
the project method, the material should be arranged 
in a logical order and drilled upon until a systematic 
grasp of the subject is realized. 

It must be borne in mind that the writer does not 
advocate that all the material in a given subject should 
be taught by the project method. At times it may be 
uneconomical to use the project. The writer does 
maintain that the project method is a very effective 
method of teaching and should be used extensively. 

A conscious effort has been made in methods of 
teaching to find a unit of teaching or a method of 
teaching which will help bridge the gap between school 
tasks and tasks carried on outside the school. An 
effort has been made to find a unit which will combine 
the good features of home education with the good 
features of school education. The project as a unit 
of teaching seems to meet this need, for it provides 
for learning in its natural setting. 

The project aims to present problems in situations 
not essentially different from those of life outside the 
school, and to develop the technique of carrying the 
act to completion. 



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Schneider, Herman: Growth of Cooperative System. In 
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The St. Louis plan of cooperation with factories. Partial 
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Concluded in November issue, pp. 14-50. 



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/ 



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INDEX 



Action, defined, 44-45; psychology 
of, 45-47 ; technique of, developed 
by project, 131-135, 136 
Agriculture, teaching situation in, 
20 ; history of term project in, 
40-42, 89 ; definitions of projects 
by men interested in, 69-76 ; 
simple projects in, 109 ; complex 
projects in, 110-111 ; importance 
of natural setting for projects in, 
118-119; organization of courses 
in colleges of, 193 
Aims in learning, contrasted, 3 
Allen, C. R., use of term project by, 
69-71 ; discusses project in voca- 
tional education, 81-84 ; plan for 
organization of currictilum sug- 
gested by, 147-150 ; explains use 
of project in education, 151-152 
Americanization, project in, 206-213 
Anti-fly campaign, 215-220 
Anti-sneeze campaign, 223-227 
Applications, in teaching, 22, 34, 38 
Arithmetic, multi-problem in, 106 ; 
simple projects in, 109 ; illustra- 
tion of project 'in, 257-258 
Art, multi-problem in, 105-106 ; 

simple projects in, 109 
Artificial setting, vs. natural setting, 

4, 14-17, 19-20 
Automobile, project in study of, 266 

Bagley, W. C, quoted, 10; habit- 
formation discussed by, 128-129 

Ballantine, H. W., case method dis- 
cussed by, 173-174 

Barberry, project in study of, 258- 
261 

Barrows, H. P., quoted, 2 ; project 
defined by, 72-73 

Benedict, B. W., shop instruction 
described by, 161, 162 



Betis method, advantages of, 184 
Better English Week, 197-200 
Biology, illustration of project in, 

258-261 
Bobbitt, Franklin, illustration of 
project method by, 61-63 ; method 
of building up curriculum in agri- 
culture suggested by, 154-155 
Bungalow, project in construction of, 
268-274 

Calkins, Charlotte, multi-problem in 
art outlined by, 105-106 

Carnegie Institute of Technology, 
School of Life Insurance Sales- 
manship at, 186-190 ; projects 
carried out in departments of, 190 

Charters, W. W., quoted, 47, 50, 
117, 120; definition of project by, 
55-56 ; illustration of multi-prob- 
lem by, 103-104 ; relation of proj- 
ect to thinking indicated by, 127 ; 
value of project in developing 
technique of action discussed by, 
131-132 ; organization of curric- 
ulum on project basis discussed 
by, 156-157 

Chemistry, manual problem and 
project in,. 97-98; principles of in- 
dustrial, developed by projects, 143^ 

Civics, taught on subject basis, 148; 
illustrations of projects in, 205-215 

Civil War, project in comparison 
with World War, 241-243 

Clark, J. R., multi-problem in arith- 
metic reported by, 106 

Committee of Twelve, 183 

Complex Projects, 102, 107-108; 
defined and illustrated, 109-115 

Composition, simple projects in, 109 

Conduct, vs. information for its own 
sake, 4, 9-14, 19-20, 54, 195-196 



301 



302 



INDEX 



Cooking, project in, 263 

Cooperative system, development 
and features of, 163-165 

Curriculum, provision for life situa- 
tions in, 123 ; need for scientific 
methods in organization of, 137- 
138 ; principles involved in making, 
138-139 ; illustrations of reor- 
ganization on project basis, 139- 
152 ; obsolete material in, 152- 
153 ; project as basis for organiza- 
tion of, 153-157 

Demonstration, teaching by, 22, 35, 
38 

Dewey, John, conduct character- 
ized by, 9, 10; artificiality of 
setting characterized by, 15-16 ; 
problem defined by, 30-31, 94; 
demonstration defined by, 35 ; 
activity defined by, 45 ; thinking 
defined by, 120-121 ; project as 
means of gaining information dis- 
cussed by, 123-124 ; value of drill 
discussed by, 128 ; project method 
characterized by, 144 

Dietetics, project in, 262-263 

Disease, project in prevention of, 
220-223 

Doll's house, project in making, 247- 
251 

Dramatization, project in, 200-202 

Drawing, taught on subject basis, 
148, 149 

Drill, teaching by, 22, 32, 38 ; value 
of, in education, 128-131 

Drushel, project defined by, 79-80 

Education, development of, in home 
and school, 194-195 

Elementary school instruction, use of 
project in, 86-88 

Engineering, project idea applied 
in, 158-168, 191-192 

English, use of project in, 84-85; 
composition, simple projects in, 
109; taught as independent sub- 
ject, 148 ; illustrations of projects 
in, 197-205 

Examples, teaching by, 22, 29-30, 
38 



Exercises, teaching by, 4, 22, 30 
Experiment, method of teaching by, 
22, 35-36, 38 

Fireless cooker, project in study of, 
266 

Foreign languages, illustrations of 
projects in, 267-268 

French, project in, 268 

French, W. H., project defined by, 
71-72 ; complex projects in agri- 
culture suggested by. 111 

Geography, multi-problem in, 103- 

104, 106-107; illustrations of 

projects in, 227-239 
Geometry, illustrations of projects 

in, 256-258 
German, project in, 267-268 
Gouin method, advantages of, 183- 

184 

Habits, 47, 48 ; formation of, in rela- 
tion to project method, 128-131, 
135-136 

Handschin, Charles H., direct method 
of teaching modern languages 
approved by, 183 

Harrington, H. F., project idea in 
journalism course by, 181-183 

Heald, F. E., quoted, 36; historical 
sketch of project in agriculture by, 
41-42; project defined by, 72-75 

Henderson, E. N., quoted, 8, 32 

Herbartian lesson plan, application 
in, 33 

History, intellectual problem and 
project in, 98-99 ; complex project 
in. 111 ; taught chronologically, 
147-148; illustrations of projects 
in, 239-243 

Home Economics, illustrations of 
projects in,. 261-263 

Home project, 40, 89 

Hosic, J. F,, characterization of 
project by, 84-85 ; use of term 
problem-project by, 92 

House Beautiful, 106 

Household science, teaching situa- 
tion in, 21 

Hygiene, projects in, 215-227 



INDEX 



303 



Illustration, teaching by, 22, 34, 38 
Industrial Education, use of project 

in, 81-84 ; outline of project in, 

150 
Information, for its own sake vs. 

conduct, 4, 9-14, 19-20, 54, 195- 

196 
Insurance Salesmanship, School of, at 

Carnegie Institute of Technology, 

186 ; organization of curricula for, 

186-187 ; methods of teaching, 

187-190 
Intellectual Problems, 98-101, 115 
Intellectual Projects, 98-101, 115 
Interneship, project idea in, 168, 176- 

180, 194 

Kiipatrick, W. H., definitions of 
project by, 57-61 ; distinction be- 
tween problem and project by, 
94-95 

Krackowizer, Alice M., discussion 
of project by, 86-88, 96 ; project 
and problem distinguished by, 95- 
96, 97 ; types of projects distin- 
guished by, 101-102 

Krause, Carl A., direct method of 
modern language teaching advo- 
cated by, 185 

Lane, C. H., project defined by, 72- 
73 

Law, project idea in, 168-175, 189, 
191, 193-194 

Legal Aid Society, 172 

Legal clinics, project idea incor- 
porated in, 168-174; arguments 
for and against, 175 ; limitations 
of project method in, 180; intro- 
duction of, 194 

Letter writing, project in, 202-204 

Life Topic, 64, 65, 66, 145-147 

Lull, H, G., distinction between 
problem and project by, 93 

MacHoke, quoted, 118 
McMurry, F. M., quoted, 10 
Mann, C. R,., characterization of the 
project by, 76, 80; value of proj- 
ect in engineering discussed by. 



135 ; teaching of chemistry by 
projects discussed by, 143 ; neces- 
sity of complete conception of the 
subject emphasized by, 155 ; teach- 
ing engineering by project method 
described by, 158-161, 162 
Mann, Horace, quoted, 6, 7 
Manual Problem, 97-101, 115 
Manual Project, 97-101, 115 
Manual Training, illustrations of 

projects in, 243-251 
Map study, project in, 227-229 
Mathematics, textbook and project 
basis in teaching of, 148-152 ; 
illustrations of projects in, 252—258 
Medical clinics, project idea incor- 
porated m, 175-180, 194 
Medicine, project idea in teaching 

of, 175-180, 189, 191, 194 
Meister, Morris, quoted, 78-79 
Memory of information vs. reason- 
ing, 4-9, 19-20, 53-54, 195, 196 
Modern languages, project idea 
incorporated in teaching of, 183, 
191 ; illustrations of projects in, 
267-268 
Moore, E. C, 11, 12-13 
Moore, J. C, 126-127 
Morgan, E. M., legal education dis- 
cussed by, 168, 169, 170 
Multi-problems, situations classed 
as, 80, 92; explained, 102,115; 
illustrations of, in geography, 103- 
104, 106-107; in art, 105, 106; 
in arithmetic, 106 

Natural setting, vs. artificial setting, 
4, 14-17, 19-20, 49-54; as dis- 
tinct contribution of the project 
method, 90 ; makes provision for 
strong motive, 116—117; disre- 
garded in education, 194, 196 ; 
determination necessary for proj- 
ect, 196 

Ohio State University, approach to 
project method in engineering 
courses of, 165 

Originals, use of, in teaching, 22, 30, 
38 

Owen, W. B., quoted, 45^6 



304 



INDEX 



Parcel post project, 111-114 
Parker, Francis W., quoted, 153 
Pasteur, project method illustrated 

by work of, 126 
Pastoral people, project in study of, 

275-277 
Physics, complex project in, 114; 
illustrations of projects in, 257- 
258, 263-267 
Pillsbury, W. B., quoted, 46-47 
Poems, project in collecting, 204-205 
Practicum, use of term, 2; as 
method of teaching, 4, 22, 38, 49 ; 
definitions of, 36-37 
Principles, priority of, vs. priority of 
problem, 4, 17-19, 20, 48-49, 54, 
196 
Problem, as method of teaching, 4, 
22, 29, 38; defined, 30-31, 94; 
distinguished from project, 94-97 ; 
types of : intellectual and manual, 
97-101, 115; classifications of: 
simple and multi-problems, 102- 
107, 115 
Problem, priority of, vs. priority of 
principles, 4, 17-19, 20, 48-49, 
54, 196 ; essential element of proj- 
ect, 47-48 
Problem-project method, 92 "^ 
Project, variety of opinion concern- 
ing, 1-2 ; characteristics of, 3-4 ; 
history of term, 40-42 ; author's 
definition of, 43, 89, 94, 114; 
justification for use of term, 43- 
54 ; criticism of current definitions, 
54-55 ; proposed definitions by 
educators, 55-90 ; distinguished 
from problem, 94-97 ; types of : 
intellectual and manual, 97-101, 
115; classifications of : simple and 
complex, 102, 107-115 ; as source 
of interest, 116-119^ psychology 
of, 119; relation of, to thinking, 
120-127, 135-136 ; acquiring of 
habits and skills stimulated by, 
128-130, 135-136; value of in 
developing technique of action, 
131-136 ; as basis for organization 
of the curriculum, 138-139, 153- 
157 ; illustrations of reorganized 
curricula based on, 139-152 ; in 



engineering, 158-168 ; in legal 
and medical clinics, 168-180 ; in 
journalism courses, 181-183 ; in 
direct method of teaching modern 
language, 183-186 ; in teaching 
insurance salesmanship, 186-190 ; 
in teaching dramatic arts, 190; 
aim of, 191 ; method of teaching 
applied to subjects in the elemen- 
tary and high schools, 192-278 
Prosser, use of term project by, 41, 
69-71 

Questions, used in teaching, 22, 23- 
28, 37-38 ; detailed, 25 ; memory, 
25; topical, 25; thought, 27 

Randall, J. A., school project defined 

by, 80 
Reading, project in, 200-202 
Reasoning vs. memorizing, 4-9, 

19-20, 53-54, 195, 196 
Reflexes, 47-48 
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 

project idea in engineering courses 

at, 158-159, 178 
Reviews, used in teaching, 22, 33, 38 

Schneider, Professor, cooperative sys- 
tem of education organized by, 
163-165 

Science, projects defined by men 
interested in, 76-80; proposed 
reorganization in teaching of, 143- 
144 

Sheffield Scientific School, 159 

Sherman, C. E., report of engineer- 
ing work by, 165-166, 167 

Simple Problems, 102-103, 115 

Simple Projects, 102, 107-108, 115; 
illustrations of, 108-109 

Skills, in relation to project method, 
130-131, 136 

Smith, D. E., quoted, 29 

Smith-Hughes Act, 1, 42 

Smith-Lever Act, 41 

Snedden, David, use of term project 
by, 41, 66-69 

Socialized recitation, 195 

Stimson, R. W., quoted, 20-21, 119; 
use of term project by, 40-41, 69- 
71 ; complex projects in agriculture 



INDEX 



305 



outlined by, 110-111 ; necessity 

for drill in agricultural projects 

recognized by, 129 ; Vocational 

Education by Home Projects by, 

197 
Stone, C. W,, project defined by, 

64-66 ; complex project outlined 

by, 111-114; project organized 

by, 144-147 
Subject matter, abstract in schools, 

194 ; effort to make concrete, 195 ; 

projects cutting across several 

fields of, 268-277 
Subjects, method of teaching by, 

147, 149 ; major and minor, 147, 

149, 150, 151 
Sugar, project in study of production 

in U. S., 233-239 
Suzzallo, Henry, quoted, 29-30, 33, 

34,35 

Teaching, types of, analyzed, 22-39 
Tests, used in teaching, 22, 32, 38; 

standardized, 137 
Thinking, defined, 120-121 ; in rela- 
tion to the project, 120-127, 135- 
136 
Titchener, E. B., quoted, 44 
Topics, teaching by, 22, 28-29, 38 
Transportation, project in study of, 
229-233 



Twiss, G. R., quoted, 17, 18, 144 J 
necessity for organization of in- 
formation discussed by, 156 

Types of teaching analyzed, 22-39 

University of Cincinnati, coopera- 
tive system of education at, 163, 
164 

University of Illinois, illustration 
of project method in engineering 
courses at, 161-163 ; in journalism 
courses of, 181-183 ; projects de- 
veloped by students at, 197 

University of Minnesota, experiraents 
in legal education at, 171 

Ventilation, project in, 263-266 

White, E. E., quoted, 32 
Wigmore, John H., quoted, 172 
Woodhull, John F., views on project 

method, 76-77, 79, 80, 91-92 
Woodworking, curriculum in, based 

on projects, 139-142 
Wool, project in study of, 275-277 
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 

method of handling the shop 

problem at, 160, 161 
World War, projects concerning, 204- 

205, 239-243 



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